South Korean crypto exchange Bithumb has signed a strategic partnership with World Liberty Financial, the Trump-affiliated crypto venture, on Monday.
Per an official statement released Tuesday, the partnership will help foster global DeFi growth. Further, the deal aims to explore new business opportunities in the DeFi sector and strengthen global investor confidence.
The companies signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Monday at the Bithumb Financial Tower in Seoul. Bithumb’s Lee, World Liberty co-founder Zak Folkman and executives from both firms attended.
“This collaboration with WLF will be a significant milestone in enhancing Bithumb’s global competitiveness,” said Bithumb CEO Lee Jae-won. “We will continue to strengthen our strategic network going forward.”
Lee pledged to continue strengthening the firm’s “strategic network.” “This collaboration with WLF will be a significant milestone in enhancing Bithumb’s global competitiveness,” he added.
The partnership follows Lee’s meeting with Eric Trump, World Liberty co-founder and Trump’s second son, at the Hong Kong Bitcoin Asia 2025 event in August.
Combining Bithumb’s technical expertise with WLF’s strategic vision, the initiative could also accelerate the development and adoption of new DeFi products. The exchange said that it also discussed strategic collaboration with stablecoin issuer Circle simultaneously, in an effort to continue its global expansion.
Besides, the collaboration could be a crowd-puller, especially for retail investors who have been hesitant about crypto due to perceived volatility or lack of regulation.
