Trump-linked crypto firm faces auditor scrutiny as financial turmoil deepens

• Alt5 Sigma faces scrutiny after missing filings and hiring an auditor whose licence expired earlier this year.
• Trump-linked crypto deal draws attention as governance gaps and auditor penalties raise oversight concerns.
• Board exits, audit delays, and legal disclosures put Alt5 Sigma at risk of Nasdaq delisting.

Alt5 Sigma, a US-listed crypto firm that struck a high-profile deal with a Trump-backed digital asset venture, is facing growing regulatory and governance scrutiny after a series of audit, filing, and board-level disruptions, Financial Times reported.

The company is yet to publish overdue financial results and is now working with an audit firm whose licence to practise lapsed earlier this year.

The developments have raised fresh questions about oversight at the company just months after it committed to holding large volumes of a politically connected crypto token.

Alt5 Sigma drew attention in August when it agreed to buy and hold tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, a crypto project backed by the Trump family.

The deal also saw Eric Trump join Alt5 Sigma as a board observer, while World Liberty Financial became an investor in the company.

Since then, Alt5 Sigma has struggled to meet its regulatory obligations, triggering concerns among investors and regulators.

Auditor under review

In December, Alt5 Sigma appointed Victor Mokuolu CPA PLLC as its new auditor.

However, filings in Texas show that the firm’s licence to practise expired in August and had not been renewed as of December 26.

Under state rules, the firm is barred from carrying out audit work until the licence is reactivated.

Alt5 Sigma told Financial Times, its auditor is undergoing a mandatory peer review under Texas State Board of Accountancy regulations, with the process expected to conclude by the end of January 2026.

The company said no audit or review of its financial statements will be issued until the firm’s licence becomes active.

While Victor Mokuolu renewed his personal certified public accountant licence on August 31, his firm’s licence remained inactive at year-end.

Past regulatory penalties

The audit firm has previously faced enforcement action.

In 2023, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board fined Victor Mokuolu CPA PLLC $30,000 for failing to notify the regulator about audits of six public companies it conducted in 2022.

The Texas board imposed an additional $15,000 penalty last year for the same violations.

The firm has also been working for more than two years to address deficiencies that resulted in a failing grade under the profession’s peer review process in 2023.

Despite this, it disclosed 30 small-cap audit clients in a recent regulatory filing.

Mokuolu founded the firm in 2020 after working in the oil and gas industry.

Filing delays and board gaps

Alt5 Sigma has not filed its quarterly results for the period ending in late September, placing it at risk of being delisted from Nasdaq.

The company attributed the delay partly to the timeliness and responsiveness of its previous auditor, which formally resigned in November.

Governance issues have compounded the pressure.

Chief financial officer Jonathan Hugh, hired around the time of the Trump-linked deal, left after three months.

Chief executive Peter Tassiopoulos exited in October.

Board member David Danziger resigned last month, leaving Alt5 Sigma in violation of requirements to maintain an audit committee of a certain size with accounting expertise.

Corporate shifts and disclosures

Alt5 Sigma was incorporated in July 2024 by biotech firm JanOne Inc., which merged with Alt5 Sigma and adopted its name in the same month.

JanOne had previously rebranded in 2019, having earlier operated as Appliance Recycling Centers of America.

The company says it provides infrastructure that allows financial institutions to integrate with digital assets.

As of December 8, it held about 7.3 billion $WLFI tokens valued at roughly $1.1 billion.

Since August, its chair has been Zack Witkoff, co-founder of World Liberty Financial and son of Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump’s special envoy for peace negotiations.

Alt5 Sigma has also disclosed that its Canadian subsidiary and former principal were found criminally liable by a Rwandan court in May for offences including illicit enrichment and money laundering.

That ruling is under appeal, with both parties denying wrongdoing.