Trump-Backed WLFI Targets $72B Korean Market With Bold Partnership

World Liberty Financial, the Trump-backed fintech project behind the USD1 stablecoin, is moving beyond crypto-native circles as it prepares consumer products and deepens ties in Asia.

At the center of its next phase is a debit card that links directly to USD1 and works with Apple Pay. According to co-founder Zak Folkman, the goal is to make spending stablecoins as seamless as using a credit card. Alongside the card, WLFI is preparing a retail app that blends peer-to-peer transfers with simplified trading features, pitched as a mainstream gateway for digital money.

Rather than building its own blockchain, the company is pursuing a chain-agnostic model. Folkman argued that this approach will allow WLFI to integrate with existing infrastructure rather than compete against it.

The strategy has already been tested through USD1s rapid expansion onto multiple networks, including Solana, where an additional 100 million tokens were minted earlier this month. With a market cap climbing past $3 billion, USD1 has quickly emerged as one of the fastest-growing stablecoins in the U.S.

The momentum extends overseas. WLFI has struck a partnership with Bithumb, South Korea‘s second-largest crypto exchange, through a memorandum of understanding signed after meetings between Bithumb’s CEO Lee Jae-won and co-founder Eric Trump. Korea, home to a $72 billion crypto market, is already proving fertile ground, with USD1 listed on both Bithumb and Upbit.

For WLFI, which has also tapped Chainlink to expand interoperability, these moves illustrate a broader ambition: to establish stable, user-friendly financial products that cross borders and outlast hype cycles. “This isn‘t about rolling out another chain,” Folkman said at a recent event. “It’s about building tools that people will still use years from now.”