Donald Trump’s crypto partners are facing lawsuits and scrutiny after launching a lucrative new venture while their previous platform’s users were left reeling from a multimillion-dollar hack.
In May 2024, Jonathan Lopez, a 31-year-old investor and motivational speaker from Miami, committed nearly $1 million in cryptocurrency to Dough Finance—a trading platform that offered users high-risk strategies with just a few clicks.
Among the platform’s most enticing features was a trading method known as “looping.” This allowed investors to borrow against their crypto holdings, reinvest repeatedly, and build up enormous exposure. Despite the risks, the simplicity of the process—and the personal encouragement from co-founder Chase Herro—convinced Lopez to go all in.
“We get reward(s) for the risks we take,” Herro wrote in a message to Lopez. “Lfg,” he added, using internet shorthand for “let’s fucking go.”
Lopez paid a 5% deposit fee to join Dough, and Herro reportedly provided one-on-one guidance. However, on July 12, 2024, disaster struck. Hackers stole more than $2.5 million from the platform—including Lopez’s entire investment. According to a later post-mortem published by Dough on Medium, the breach was traced to a vulnerability in their codebase.
“We acknowledge our mistake and are deeply sorry,” the company said. “We will continue to work diligently to protect our users and their assets, learning from this incident to enhance our security posture.”
Just two months later, Herro and fellow Dough co-founder Zak Folkman re-emerged at the helm of a new cryptocurrency venture: World Liberty Financial. This time, they had heavyweight backing—from former U.S. President Donald Trump and his three sons, Don Jr., Eric, and Barron.
Introduced to the Trump family by Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Herro and Folkman joined forces with the former president, who now serves as World Liberty’s “Chief Crypto Advocate.” Trump’s sons are also involved, taking on the roles of “Web3 Ambassadors.”
Meanwhile, Lopez filed a lawsuit in January 2025, accusing Herro of fraud, misrepresentation, breach of fiduciary duty, and violating Florida’s securities laws. The investor is seeking restitution, punitive damages, and legal costs. His attorney, Joseph Pardo, argued that Lopez invested based on Herro’s assurances. However, lawyers representing Herro have filed a motion for dismissal or arbitration, describing Lopez as a “sophisticated” investor who understood the inherent risks of the crypto market.
A federal judge has scheduled a trial for April 2026 in Miami.
In a statement, Eric Trump praised the new partnership, saying: “We are proud of the entire team. They have overachieved our wildest goals and our current trajectory is nothing short of incredible.”
Internal communications and a Reuters investigation into the lawsuit have exposed how Herro and Folkman transitioned from the collapse of Dough to the meteoric rise of World Liberty, which has already generated over $550 million in token sales. Of that, Herro and Folkman have reportedly earned at least $65 million, while the Trump family’s share nears $400 million.
Before launching Dough Finance, Herro and Folkman built reputations as brash crypto influencers and online entrepreneurs. Herro once branded himself “the dirtbag of the internet,” while Folkman founded a controversial dating website called “Date Hotter Girls.”
Neither Herro, Folkman, nor their attorneys responded to requests for comment. Don Jr. and Barron Trump also remained silent. The White House directed all inquiries to the Trump Organization.
World Liberty now forms part of a broader network of Trump-linked cryptocurrency projects, including a $TRUMP meme coin, crypto ETFs under Trump Media & Technology Group, a mining operation called American Bitcoin, and USD1—a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar.
These ventures have reignited debate over how officeholders leverage power for personal gain. Beyond crypto, the Trump family has also announced new luxury developments, including a hotel in Dubai and a golf resort in Qatar, as they continue expanding their global business empire during Trump’s current term.
