Aqua 1 Foundation, a UAE-based Web3 investment fund, has announced a $100 million purchase of governance tokens in World Liberty Financial (WLF), becoming the platform’s largest single investor and marking a further Middle Eastern entry into the project.
The transaction grants Aqua 1 enhanced voting rights over WLF’s development roadmap. According to a joint statement, the capital will be used to accelerate blockchain-based financial applications, including the expansion of WLF’s USD1 stablecoin and the development of tokenisation platforms for traditional assets such as real estate and commodities.
Strategic development plans
In addition, the partnership includes plans to co-develop “BlockRock”, an institutional real-world asset tokenisation platform, and to support the launch of Aqua 1’s “Aqua Fund”, a UAE-domiciled digital economy investment vehicle backed by regional stakeholders.
“Aligning with Aqua 1 validates our blueprint for global financial innovation,” said WLF co-founder Zak Folkman. “We have a joint mission to bring digital assets to the masses and strengthen our nation’s standing as a champion and leader of cryptocurrency.”
Dave Lee, founding partner at Aqua 1, said the USD1 ecosystem represents a “trillion-dollar structural pivot opportunity” that connects traditional finance with decentralised technology.
Ownership structure and scrutiny
World Liberty Financial was founded in 2024 and is primarily owned by DT Marks DEFI LLC, an entity linked to former US President Donald Trump and his family. The Trump-associated entity holds approximately 60% of WLF, reduced from an earlier 75%, and is entitled to a significant share of net revenues from token sales. Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are involved in management, while Barron Trump is listed as the project’s “DeFi visionary”. Day-to-day operations are led by co-founders Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro.
The Aqua 1 investment follows another recent Abu Dhabi-linked deal in WLF, renewing debate among policy analysts over governance, transparency and potential conflicts of interest. WLF and its partners have stated that appropriate structures are in place and maintain that the project operates independently within applicable regulatory frameworks.
