Beluga Exclusive: Interview with Justin Sun, Founder of TRON

About Justin

Justin Sun is the Ambassador and former Permanent Representative of Grenada to the WTO, Founder of TRON, one of the world's largest blockchain DAO ecosystems, and Advisor to HTX, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges.

Justin launched Tron in 2017 which is one of the largest blockchain networks with a market cap of over $20B.  Justin started in crypto working for Ripple in China in 2013.  

A protege of Alibaba's Jack Ma, Sun has been named Forbes' 30 under 30 in the Consumer Technology category several times, among other global recognitions. Sun is an avid art collector, gamer, investor, philanthropist, and space enthusiast.  Justin has a masters degree from University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from Peking University in China.

Questions

1. Lets jump right in with the recent news.  You just ate a $6M banana.  How did this all happen and how did it taste?

The banana tasted very good (laugh).

I’ve been collecting art for many years. My art collection includes Alberto Giacometti's sculpture "Le Nez", Beeple's digital artwork "Ocean Front", Picasso portrait of Marie-Thérese, Andy Warhol “fright wig” portraits and many more. Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian challenges traditional ideas of value. 

Similarly, blockchains and cryptocurrencies disrupt traditional systems by redefining value creation, trust, and ownership. Just as Comedian questions what makes something valuable, blockchain technology shifts the paradigm by decentralizing control and empowering communities to assign value without relying on centralized authorities.

2. You also just became the Prime Minister of Liberland. How did you get involved with Liberland and what is your role?

To me, Liberland represents a unique opportunity to build a community founded on individual empowerment, freedom, and shared values. It’s a living example of how a society can function with minimal government intervention, where individuals have the liberty to shape their own destinies while contributing to the common good. My decision to run for Prime Minister is driven by a commitment to support this evolving nation, ensuring that its core principles of libertarianism and personal autonomy continue to guide its development, benefiting all who are part of this journey.

As Prime Minister, I will ensure that Liberland remains anchored to its libertarian principles. My focus will be on fostering active community participation and letting governance evolve organically in response to citizens' needs and contributions.

3. While you seem to be having a lot of fun, Tron has become one of the most used blockchains.  USDT has seen amazing volume.  What are some of the key metrics you are most proud about with Tron?

TRON now supports over 287 million user accounts on the blockchain with 2.6 million daily active users in the past month. TRON has also processed over 9.5 billion transactions with over $16.3 trillion in volume transferred. TRON’s growth shows that mass adoption isn’t just a narrative or a buzzword. Onchain data shows TRON’s ability to support real-world use at scale.

Also, TRON, Tether, and TRM Labs have joined forces to establish the T3 Financial Crime Unit, a first-of-its-kind initiative aimed at facilitating public-private collaboration to combat illicit activity associated with the use of USDT on the TRON blockchain. 

Since launch, the initiative has facilitated the freezing of over 126 million USDT in funds in collaboration with global law enforcement.

The T3 FCU leverages public blockchain data without altering TRON's core decentralized structure or operations. By bringing together the expertise of TRON, Tether, and TRM Labs, the process is streamlined, helping authorities trace and identify those behind illicit activities more quickly.

4. What is USDD?

USDD 2.0 is a decentralized stablecoin based on security, transparency, and stability. It integrates safe liquidation, dynamic collateral adjustments, and advanced risk management to maintain its 1:1 peg to the US dollar. With over-collateralization and community-driven governance, users retain full control of their assets within a transparent and auditable system.

The upgrade also features seamless DeFi integration, efficient liquidation processes, collateral auctions, and a Peg Stability Module (PSM) to ensure market stability. USDD 2.0 ecosystem is designed for long-term growth, empowering users while safeguarding the protocol through real-time monitoring and community-led decision-making.

5. How did you first get interested in crypto?  And what was your first job at Ripple like?

Around 2011, I graduated from Peking University in Beijing and applied for grad school in the US. Joined Upenn around 2012. I started to learn about bitcoin around that time. When I first joined the bitcoin world in 2012, everybody was saying Bitcoin is a social experiment. Around 2013, I joined ripple labs, at the time it was called open coin. I was the first Asian employee in Ripple Labs. And then the company later rebranded to Ripple Labs. Then I was the first employee in China as well. I was the chief representative in China. Worked on developing and building the Ripple community at the time. One of the reasons I always liked stablecoins is when I first joined Ripple, XRP, their goal was to become a global settlement layer. Sending fiat between blockchain protocols. At the time there was no concept of stablecoins. 

6. Back to crypto, you recently got into the memecoin business and launched sun.pump.  What are your thoughts about memecoins?

Beyond what is at face value, meme coins show that anyone can be part of the blockchain economy, regardless of experience. Memecoins can help drive mass adoption by breaking down barriers and making crypto more approachable and accessible to everyone. They play a key role in getting more people involved and building a sense of community. The memecoin ecosystem is only going to get bigger, and there’s a lot of backing for memecoin developers within the TRON community, which makes the future look really promising.

7. Why did you invest in Trump’s new coin WLFI?

The U.S. is quickly becoming a major hub for blockchain, and with President Trump’s pro-innovation stance, the future looks bright for crypto. TRON is excited to support this momentum and continue leading the way in blockchain innovation. Additionally, I’m honored to join World Liberty Financial as an advisor.  This role aligns with my broader vision of advancing financial freedom and fostering global adoption of blockchain technology. World Liberty Financial is committed to driving innovation and making crypto accessible to a wider audience, particularly in the U.S. Together, I believe we can push the boundaries of what blockchain can achieve and bring the benefits of this technology to people everywhere worldwide.

8. What else are you working on or excited about in the crypto industry?

TRON recently saw its first AI-powered agent, launched through SunPump, making token creation effortless. Users can simply chat with the AI Agent to create their own tokens. Every token created through the AI Assistant gets assigned a unique identifier so it’s easy to recognize. It’s exciting to see how AI is making blockchain more accessible and innovative.