Eric Trump removed from board of World Liberty Treasury Company "Alt5 Sigma" due to Nasdaq rules - Forbes

Eric Trump removed from board of World Liberty Treasury Company "Alt5 Sigma" due to Nasdaq rules - Forbes

Eric Trump, son of former President Donald Trump, has been removed from the board of directors of Alt5 Sigma, a fintech firm backed by the Trump Organization. The change occurred after discussions with Nasdaq, the company's listing exchange, to comply with its listing rules . The announcement, made through an SEC filing, revealed that Eric Trump would now serve as a board observer, while Donald Trump Jr. and other World Liberty Financial leaders would join Nasdaq's opening bell ceremony on August 13 .

The deal, initially announced in August, involved Alt5 Sigma raising $1.5 billion through direct and private sales of shares to buy digital tokens from World Liberty Financial. Eric Trump was slated to become a director on Alt5 Sigma's board, but the SEC filing disclosed that he would instead be a board observer, with World Liberty Financial COO and co-founder Zak Folkman joining as a director .

The reason for the change remains unclear. The SEC filing stated that the modification was made "after discussion with The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC ('Nasdaq') and in order to comply with Nasdaq’s listing rules," but it did not specify which rule or explain the rationale behind the change . Three securities law professors reviewed the filings and could not identify a clear reason for the replacement of Eric Trump by Folkman .

The change does not appear to be related to Eric Trump's legal standing in New York, where he is barred from serving as an officer of a New York corporation. Alt5 Sigma is incorporated in Nevada . As of September 8, the $WLFI tokens were trading at $0.2092, more than four times what many early investors paid, but down about 30% from their high on the public market .

The removal of Eric Trump from the board of Alt5 Sigma highlights the complexities of compliance and regulatory requirements for listed companies. The incident also underscores the evolving landscape of crypto and fintech, where regulatory changes can significantly impact business operations and leadership structures.

References:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacheverson/2025/09/09/eric-trump-world-liberty-financial-alt5-sigma-nasdaq-crypto/
https://www.panewslab.com/en/articles/a318bb5e-4fe1-429d-9077-64218f6dd129
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-family-adds-1-3-140000466.html