D
uring a CoinDesk TV interview on Oct 15, Eric Trump—co‑founder of the decentralized‑finance protocol World Liberty Financial (WLFI)—announced he is tokenizing a real‑estate project tied to a building under construction. He explained the plan would let the public buy fractional ownership through WLFI’s crypto infrastructure, offering micro‑shares in high‑profile properties to retail investors. Trump said he could bypass traditional lenders like Deutsche Bank and instead raise capital from the masses, with investors contributing as little as $1,000 for partial ownership and perks such as hotel access. The initiative will integrate with WLFI’s U.S. dollar stablecoin, USD1. WLFI, launched last year, seeks to merge crypto infrastructure with conventional finance and has recently revealed a forthcoming debit card and retail app that will enable everyday use of USD1.
Earlier, co‑founder Zach Witkoff hinted at bringing the Trump real‑estate portfolio on‑chain during a Token2049 panel in Singapore. Tokenization—converting assets such as bonds, equity, or real‑estate into tradable digital tokens—is increasingly adopted by global banks and asset managers to unlock liquidity and broaden access to traditionally exclusive classes.
Trump’s remarks precede the full interview’s airing on Oct 21 on CoinDesk’s YouTube channel.
In other crypto news, trading volumes fell 17.5 % in September, marking the fourth consecutive year of decline, while open interest reached a record high of $230 billion. CME’s altcoin futures, including SOL and XRP, saw gains, whereas BTC and ETH futures slipped. Meanwhile, Kraken acquired the U.S.‑licensed derivatives platform Small Exchange from IG for $100 million, adding to its recent $1.5 billion purchase of NinjaTrader.
