Eric Trump’s planned appointment as a board director at fintech firm Alt5 Sigma has been revised to a non-voting board observer position to comply with Nasdaq listing rules. The change, which also affects crypto startup World Liberty Financial’s (WLF) Chief Operating Officer Zak Folkman, was disclosed in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing dated August 25 and reported on September 9, 2025.
The revision came “after discussion with The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (‘Nasdaq’), and in order to comply with Nasdaq’s listing rules,” according to the company’s filing. While Folkman was also designated as an observer, the filing notes he may be appointed as a director in the future, subject to stockholder approval. The specific Nasdaq rule that prompted the change was not detailed in the disclosure.
The adjustment follows an August announcement where Alt5 Sigma detailed plans to raise $1.5 billion in equity to purchase digital tokens from World Liberty Financial, the creator of the $WLFI token. A Trump-affiliated company DEFI LLC owns approximately 38% of World Liberty Financial. This entity also holds 22.5 billion $WLFI tokens and is set to receive about 75% of the proceeds from token sales.
Alt5 Sigma has already acquired 7.3 billion $WLFI tokens at a price of $0.18 each. The token, which was initially offered to early investors at prices of $0.015 and $0.05, traded at $0.2092 on September 8 before dipping to around $0.19 on September 9, according to The Block. The market value of Alt5 Sigma’s holdings is estimated to be between $1.3 billion and $1.5 billion.
For a publicly traded firm, appointing high-profile figures to its board is not a simple matter of agreement but is subject to strict compliance with exchange rules designed to protect investors and ensure board independence. The move signals that as the digital asset industry matures, the government will still apply its parameters, no matter who is involved.
