On May 21, 2025, World Foundation announced that its subsidiary World Assets Ltd. sold WLD tokens worth $135 million at market price to early supporters Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Bain Capital Crypto. Following the news, the price of WLD surged over 13% in a short period, reaching a peak of $1.29, with trading volume also increasing by 70%.

Matt Hougam, Chief Investment Officer of Bitwise, expressed on X, 'a16z and Bain spent so much money buying WLD, but this token has dropped 90% over the past 14 months. I've never seen operations like this. To be honest, it's quite interesting.'

The two venture capitals directly purchased at market price

According to the official announcement from Worldcoin, this is not a new round of financing, but rather a16z and Bain Capital Crypto directly purchased WLD at market price, without any discount. This funding is primarily aimed at accelerating the expansion of the World network, particularly in the U.S. market, such as establishing an Orb factory in Richardson, Texas, specifically for the large-scale production of identification devices used for iris scanning. The official blog indicates that by April 28, 2025, the circulation of WLD will be 1.3 billion, accounting for 13% of the total supply.

It's worth mentioning that this is already another major purchase of coins by a16z this year. The last time was in April when a16z spent $55 million to buy LayerZero's ZRO tokens, with a lock-up period of three years.

Worldcoin was co-founded by OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman and others back in 2019, aiming to create a global identification system called 'World ID' through iris scanning technology to distinguish between humans and AI, addressing the increasingly complex issue of digital identity. In May 2023, Worldcoin's development company, Tools for Humanity, completed a $115 million Series C funding round, led by Blockchain Capital, with participation from a16z, Bain Capital Crypto, and Distributed Global.

As of May 2025, the number of users on the Worldcoin network has exceeded 26 million, with 12.5 million people completing Orb verification and obtaining a World ID. This project now has a solid user base globally, particularly in emerging markets.

This round of token sales coincided with a broader recovery in the crypto market. Bitcoin recently hit new highs, which also boosted the rise of a number of tokens, including WLD. Selling a large batch of tokens at this time allowed Worldcoin to hit the market rhythm right and prepare funds for its entry into the U.S. market.

So why are these two venture capitals buying WLD right now?

In simple terms, a16z and Bain themselves are typical long-term players who focus more on platform-level opportunities rather than chasing short-term trends. Although WLD is currently priced low, based on technical strength, team background, and project vision, this may be the right moment to be 'undervalued by the market.' The more panic in the market and the greater the price mismatch, the more it signals 'below intrinsic value' for these seasoned institutions. WLD has dropped 90%, retail investors are frightened and liquidating, but they instead feel that now is a good time to buy at the bottom.

Additionally, Worldcoin made a very strong privacy defense at the Consensus 2025 conference, further boosting market confidence. The official emphasized that iris scan data is stored locally and meets privacy protection standards, which indeed alleviated external concerns about data security.

Focusing on expansion in the U.S. market and technological implementation

The core purpose of this venture capital's large purchase of WLD is to support Worldcoin's implementation in the U.S. On May 1, Worldcoin officially launched the 'World ID' identity verification system in the U.S. and has established iris scanning points in six cities, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Miami, fully promoting its layout and technological implementation in the U.S. market.

In addition, the World App debit card project in collaboration with Visa and the age verification pilot with Match Group on Tinder show that Worldcoin is making continuous moves in the financial and social sectors, enhancing its brand influence while supporting the practical use cases for its WLD tokens.

On the technical front, Worldcoin launched the Orb Mini device and the new World ID 3.0, continuing to strengthen its presence in the blockchain and biometric fields. The Orb device, based on NVIDIA technology, can efficiently complete iris scans while generating digital identities that meet privacy protection requirements. In the context of rampant AI content, this technology is particularly critical. Additionally, Worldcoin has launched its own blockchain—World Chain, which prioritizes transactions verified by humans, making its technological ecosystem more complete and distinctive.

To summarize:

Although Worldcoin's future appears promising, the challenges are also significant. The foremost issue is privacy. Although the team repeatedly emphasizes data protection mechanisms, iris scanning technology has sparked controversy in many countries. In early May 2025, Indonesia paused Worldcoin's operations due to privacy concerns, and Spain and Portugal had also investigated its data collection. These regulatory pressures may slow down its progress in certain markets.

Additionally, Worldcoin's business model has not yet fully matured. Although the number of users is growing rapidly, how to genuinely transform iris scanning and WLD tokens into stable commercial value still requires time for validation.

However, CoinFund co-founder and one of Worldcoin's earliest investors, Jake Brukhman, is very optimistic about this. While sharing a post that is bullish on WLD, he stated: 'When I first bought Bitcoin, its fully diluted valuation (FDV) was also about $10 billion. That was 12 years ago, and almost all vested interests—media, financial institutions, and governments—were suppressing it until recently when the tide began to turn. In contrast, WLD will become a more widely distributed currency, and it is catching a favorable wind: the regulatory environment is becoming friendlier, iOS officially supports crypto, and various innovations in the blockchain space over the past 12 years are finally coming to fruition.'