Flipster x WLFI: USD1 Partnership AMA Recap
On September 15th, we went live with Youngsun Shin, our Head of Product at Flipster, and Ryan Fang, Head of Growth at World Liberty Financial (WLFI), for an exciting AMA that tackled the big question: Is USD1 the stablecoin of the future?
The conversation was packed with insights and a glimpse into what could shape the next chapter of stablecoins. If you missed it, here’s everything you need to know!
TL;DR
* Flipster x WLFI partnership launched USD1 trading pairs with a rewarding loyalty program
* USD1 has grown to a $2.7–2.8B market cap in just four month
* Beyond trading, USD1 and WLFI aim to redefine stablecoin adoption and incentives
* Stablecoins are critical for crypto’s survival, serving as the “fuel” for trading and the bridge to real-world payments, remittances, and RWA adoption
Moderator:
Today we have two distinguished speakers from Flipster and World Liberty Financial respectively.
Before we begin, in case you guys don’t know who we are, Flipster is a centralized exchange focused on crypto derivatives, engineered by traders for trading. We recently started rolling out the industry’s first zero spread perps, so users can enjoy zero spreads on more than 20 major perp pairs, ultra-fast execution, and precision order fills the more you click on in Flipster. You can also earn while you trade on Flipster. As you stay active in the market, you can passively earn yield on your USDT balance, making sure you never miss an opportunity.
That’s just a little bit about Flipster, in case you guys are new or haven’t heard of us before. Now, handing the time over to Youngsun and Ryan, in your own words, who are you and what do you do in your respective roles?
Youngsun:
Hey, nice to meet all of you. My name is Yongsun, and I’m currently the Head of Product at Flipster, leading product development for the team! Before this, I worked at other tech companies like Uber and Coupang, and I’m genuinely into Web3 as a culture. I’m really excited to speak with you all today, and we have a lot in store.
Ryan:
I lead growth at WLFI. We’re really excited to be collaborating with Flipster on USD1 adoption and integration with the exchange, so let me give a little introduction.
At World Liberty Financial, we launched USD1 around May, and in just four months, it has grown from zero to a market cap of around 2.7–2.8 billion USD. The WLFI token, which captures much of USD1’s value, started trading on September 1st and now sits around a 20–25 billion fully diluted valuation. We’ve received tremendous support from community members all over the world. USD1 has a very unique mechanism and growth strategy, and its value proposition is straightforward.
Historically, stablecoins might have offered some yield or minor perks, but very few projects focus on usage and influencing user behavior. That’s exactly what we’re doing with our loyalty program, partnering with various centralized exchanges and soon with multiple DeFi protocols. Many Flipster users currently use USDT as collateral for opening perpetual futures positions. By implementing the USD1 Loyalty Program with Flipster, we can encourage users to adopt USD1 in the same way, creating real utility for the stablecoin.
To give some context, I’ve personally used USDC and USDT for years—maybe seven or eight but I don’t receive any rewards or shares from Circle or Tether. With WLFI / USD1, we have a very unique model: active users build a loyalty profile across the exchanges, distribution channels, and DeFi protocols that WLFI partners with. Loyal users earn WLFI tokens based on their usage. The more people actively use USD1, the more loyalty tokens they receive. Our focus isn’t just on holding the stablecoin or earning yield; we believe that for a stablecoin to truly succeed, it needs to be actively used for trading and other applications. Velocity is key.
We’re working hard on this strategy in collaboration with our partners. Personally, I think Flipster is an incredibly fast-growing and exciting platform, with cool features and well-designed capabilities. We’re thrilled to work with Flipster on USD1. Soon, we’ll also announce some exciting initiatives around USD1 revenue, including buyback and burn mechanisms for WLFI, which we believe will contribute to the token’s appreciation.
Q: Why is now the right time for the Flipster and World Liberty Financial partnership, and what challenge are we tackling that no one else is?
Youngsun:
Well, I think Ryan kind of put it on the spot. Obviously, we’ll dive a bit deeper into this topic. But if we step back and think about it, many of these stablecoins and projects that claim they’ll disrupt the current stablecoin landscape often overlook the core data and facts. The reality is that stablecoin usage today is fundamentally tied to trading behavior in crypto.
What really impressed me about WLFI is that they understand this core dynamic and have built it into the center of their model. That, to me, is impressive and that’s exactly where the Flipster and WLFI partnership begins. By potentially rewarding, incentivizing, or motivating users to use a particular stablecoin for trading, we’re effectively laying the groundwork for genuine stablecoin adoption.
Not many projects have been able to reach this level yet. But WLFI is taking a serious approach with this model, aiming to achieve exactly that. That’s the value proposition Flipster and WLFI are addressing, if that makes sense. Ryan, would you like to add anything?
Ryan:
Thanks for the kind words. Ultimately, when we look at the space, USDT emerged as a solution at a time when there were no alternatives, so naturally, everyone just used USDT.
From a compliance perspective and considering other factors, the market today likely needs another option: a stablecoin that is more compliant, better regulated, and more closely monitored. Currently, USDT relies on self-attestation, essentially stating that the funds exist. Not to say it doesn’t, but under new frameworks like the Genius Act, a more transparent and compliant approach that clearly shows users the full picture is a better mechanism.
Beyond that, we plan to foster collaboration and provide benefits and incentives to exchanges, DeFi protocol partners, and other stakeholders. There will also be exciting token rewards tied to these partnerships. While USDC has done remarkable work, its close alignment with Coinbase—allocating 50% of revenue to one exchange—may not be ideal for the broader ecosystem, leaving limited benefits for users.
WLFI, in contrast, is fully neutral. We are not owned or operated by any single exchange. We partner with everyone, and we’re excited about the opportunities that creates. Stablecoins are a hot topic this year, and we want to grow together with our community. Who is our community? The users of the stablecoin. They should receive WLFI tokens, creating a powerful growth flywheel. Ultimately, the use of USD1 and WLFI tokens will make the WLFI token increasingly viable and valuable. That’s the essence of our approach.
Q: Stablecoins now are at the center of CT drama this year. Why are they mission critical for crypto survival?
Youngsun:
I think stablecoins are mission-critical for the survival of crypto as they are essentially the fuel that powers the entire crypto engine. As Ryan touched on, if we look at the products crypto has brought to the world, exchanges are one clear example that has proven market fit. Another is stablecoins, which have demonstrated strong utility and adoption.
Stablecoins are among the few products that have proven their market fit through their superiority over existing payment rails and trading tools. That’s why so much attention is focused on them. They’ve endured through both bull and bear markets and have become a staple: a tool and fuel for trading, payments, and virtually all crypto transactions.
Ryan:
First of all, I think stablecoins have two core usages. The first is trading liquidity and utility, and the second is what I call real-world liquidity and real-world utility.
The way to think about it is simple: we want a stablecoin that is widely accepted for goods and services, while also maintaining strong liquidity across different trading pairs. Stablecoins are incredibly important for the space, especially in such a volatile market. While crypto-to-fiat transactions are valuable, there’s also immense potential in lending, borrowing, international payments, remittances, trade, and even launching real-world assets (RWA). For all of these applications, the settlement layer essentially requires a native stablecoin on various blockchains.
We see stablecoins as a critical part of the overall crypto ecosystem. Blockchain, at its core, represents a more global, inclusive, and efficient financial system. That’s the vision behind World Liberty Financial. Our mission is to help billions of unbanked people access U.S. dollar-denominated stable assets in a compliant and trusted way.
With this approach, users can not only preserve their wealth in stablecoins but also invest and spend it seamlessly. It’s a big mission, but we believe we have the right team, the right technology, and, most importantly, the right partnerships to make it happen. I’m particularly excited about collaborating with Flipster, and I’m confident it will be an outstanding partnership.
Q: In your opinion, do you think this is just another hype cycle or have we actually reached a turning point for stablecoins?
Ryan:
I don’t think this is just a hype cycle. This is something the world genuinely needs, and the total addressable market is enormous. From my perspective, holding large amounts of money in stablecoins gives users more freedom. Many of us have experienced withdrawal limits, endless questions, and other barriers with traditional systems. I’m not saying that regulation, security, or limitations aren’t important but there’s a better way to do this.
With traditional Web2 systems, money is essentially data in a database. Banks, payment providers, and various service providers all rely on connecting APIs. That’s a cumbersome and inefficient approach. Web3, combined with stablecoins, offers a far superior technology. That’s reason number one why I believe stablecoins are here to stay.
Reason number two is efficiency. As more merchants and service providers begin accepting stablecoins directly, it becomes easier for people worldwide to manage, spend, and use their wealth. Crypto is inherently global: anyone, anywhere, with a wallet on Ethereum, Solana, BNB, or other networks can participate.
It’s true that today, the majority of stablecoin usage is focused on trading. While we continue to prioritize that, we’re also very excited about exploring real-world use cases. Fundamentally, this is a superior technology: open ledgers are better than closed ledgers, and composability enables far more innovation. For these reasons, stablecoins are not just a trend—they’re here to stay.
Youngsun:
I think stablecoins have already passed the stage where they could be dismissed as something only a few people use, or as a temporary hype. They’ve reached an inflection point where even institutions, governments, and traditional banks recognize the need to adopt some form of crypto stablecoin. This signals that we’ve moved beyond the phase where stablecoins were seen as experimental or niche.
Stablecoin trading volumes have continued to grow consistently over time. Even with existing USD or other fiat pairs, stablecoins have seen increasing volume, TVL, and adoption. It’s just taken some time for Web2 players, institutions, and regulators to acknowledge that participation in this space is now necessary. In short, the turning point for stablecoins happened a long time ago; we’re simply seeing broader recognition and adoption now.
Q: World Liberty Financial also has its own token, WLFI. Could you share the vision behind it, the key utilities, and how adoption will be driven, especially in conjunction with USD1?
Ryan:
As I mentioned earlier, a significant part of our strategy involves partnerships and loyalty programs. Through these programs, participants and users of USD1 will earn rewards in WLFI tokens. As the USD1 market cap and market share grow, the revenue generated by USD1 will increase, and a portion of that will be used to support and power the WLFI token. We believe this creates the most effective flywheel for adoption and long-term growth.
Q: For traders, why should they flip USD1 on Flipster rather than elsewhere? What unique edge do they gain by trading here?
Youngsun:
I think this is where a bit of alpha comes into play. WLFI has introduced an impressive program that rewards trading with a specific stablecoin pair—namely, USD1. We’re actively preparing, in partnership with WLFI, to launch certain USD1 trading pairs on Flipster.
Through the points program announced with various partners, including Flipster, traders will earn reward points that can later be converted into WLFI tokens or other loyalty incentives. On Flipster, we’ve structured the system so that traders benefit more compared to other platforms. While we’ll release a detailed announcement soon, we can guarantee that trading USD1 pairs on Flipster will be the most rewarding in terms of loyalty and reward programs.
As for other campaigns or alpha, much has already been revealed. Early WLFI pre-sale participants have seen good returns, and WLFI has consistently delivered on its promises in terms of listings and market rollout. If you trust their track record, their loyalty program is likely to be equally successful when the first cycle concludes and rewards are distributed.
For traders, this means better conditions and more rewards based on your trading volume. Flipster is positioned to provide the best opportunity for this. If you haven’t yet, I highly recommend signing up and keeping an eye on the WLFI-related partnership campaign, which will be announced soon with full details. That, in itself, is the alpha.
Q: In one bold prediction, what do you think will be the next big thing in crypto before the community moves on to the next trend?
Ryan:
Honestly, I’m most excited about RWA. When you think about the blockchain space, it’s fundamentally about bringing a wider variety of assets onto-chain. While there are already many tokenized assets on the blockchain, we believe there’s still a huge opportunity to bring new, previously untapped assets on-chain. RWA represents a very exciting frontier, and I expect we’ll see more of these assets integrated into the blockchain ecosystem very soon.
Youngsun:
I’d like to address that question and also share how USD1 could change trading behavior and adoption. Traditionally, many trading platforms—especially perpetual DEXes—have incentivized users to create volume by rewarding early adopters with token airdrops at TGE, and then through loyalty programs for ongoing trading. Hyperliquid is a good example, and many new exchanges follow a similar approach.
What’s interesting here is that a stablecoin, USD1, is adopting a similar strategy: rewarding users with an incentivized program for trading a stablecoin pair. This is notable because many stablecoins that launched previously struggled to generate real trading volume or adoption, despite having ambitious visions. They often overlooked that the core current use case is exchange and DeFi trading volume.
WLFI addresses this directly. By rewarding users for trading USD1 pairs and offering loyalty points for potential juicy rewards, USD1 can influence trading behavior and set a model that other stablecoins may reference if it proves successful.
As for my bold prediction on the next big thing in crypto. Personally, I’m watching collectibles. Pokémon cards, fantasy league projects like Football.fun, and similar trading card ecosystems are gaining traction. These models are already proven outside crypto, with massive user adoption. Bringing this concept on-chain could excite both Web3 and Web2 users. Imagine the level of engagement and enthusiasm people have had with gacha games like Labubus, but fully on-chain.
So that's my bold prediction.