An analyst report alleges Tron founder Justin Sun is executing a complex, multi-layered strategy to convert approximately $20 billion worth of his personal Tron (TRX) holdings into liquid assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
"Sun’s core task, for years to come, remains converting his 60 billion illiquid TRX into Bitcoin and Ethereum," crypto analyst Punk2898 wrote in a detailed breakdown published on May 17, 2026.
The strategy allegedly involves four key mechanisms. First, Sun’s exchange HTX funnels user deposits into DeFi protocols like JustLend, where Sun can use his vast TRX supply as collateral. Second, the USDD stablecoin, backed by 10.9 billion TRX, is used to attract dollar deposits via high yields. Third, a reported $40 million investment into World Liberty Financial (WLFI) functioned as an off-exchange token swap. Finally, a July 2025 Nasdaq reverse merger for Tron Inc. allowed Sun to sell TRX directly for dollars raised from stock sales.
The analysis suggests these interconnected systems are designed to systematically liquidate a position representing 63% of the TRX circulating supply without causing a direct market crash, potentially creating long-term selling pressure on the token as value is rotated into other crypto assets.
The report draws parallels to the methods used by FTX before its collapse, where the exchange collateralized its own illiquid FTT token to borrow stablecoins. In Sun's case, the acquisition of Huobi (rebranded to HTX) provides a platform to channel user-deposited assets into yield-generating strategies that ultimately benefit from his near-unlimited TRX collateral.
According to the analysis, the USDD stablecoin is a key component, with a reported backing of 10.9 billion TRX and only 19.6 million USDT supporting a 745 million USDD circulation. This structure allows Sun to mint the stablecoin against his TRX holdings, effectively creating a vehicle to attract external liquidity.
The most direct method outlined was the 2025 Nasdaq reverse merger. This move created a regulated channel for Sun to sell large blocks of TRX over-the-counter to the newly public entity in exchange for dollars, a process the analyst compared to a modified version of Michael Saylor's Bitcoin treasury strategy.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
