WSJ: WLFI founder's Middle East trip was partly facilitated by CZ, who compared Trump to "The Godfather" during the introduction.

On May 23, the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, had flown to the UAE a month before Trump's inauguration to discuss geographies and participate in a crypto-themed conference. Zach Witkoff, the son of Steve Witkoff and founder of World Liberty Financial, likens Trump to the "godfather" when pitching to crypto companies, saying that WLFI will be able to take full advantage of the changing crypto regulatory policies in the United States. Zach Witkoff had met with a number of senior government figures in Pakistan — weeks after those officials negotiated a ceasefire agreement with the Trump administration. Zach Witkoff suggested that WLFI could use blockchain technology to "tokenize" the buying and selling of rare earth minerals in the country. And it was CZ, the founder of CEX, who helped WLFI connect some of its overseas trips. A WLFI spokesperson said CZ was just a friend of Zach Witkoff, but not a "middleman." In addition, the WLFI team has also discussed token purchases with other companies in the Gulf region, suggesting that such deals could help their expansion plans in the United States. But a spokesman for the company denied the claim.