US President Donald Trump’s second term in office coincided with an extraordinary rise in his personal wealth, much of which is tied to the vast cryptocurrency empire built by the president and his family.
President Trump’s cryptocurrency ventures generated more than $1 billion in pre-tax profits in the past year, according to an investigation by the Financial Times. President Trump’s son Eric acknowledged to the outlet that his family’s actual profits are “probably much more.”
At the center of this new wealth is World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency company founded by President Trump’s sons and their allies that has sold billions of dollars in tokens and stablecoins. The project, which lists President Donald Trump as an “honorary co-founder” on its website, launched last year with plans for a crypto lending app.
In June, Trump disclosed $57.4 million in income from his involvement with World Liberty Financial. The Trump family’s stake in the project soared to $5 billion after the tokens were unlocked last month. The FT estimates the family earned $550 million from WLFI this year.
Trump Family Issues Meme Coin
The Trump family also profited from meme coins such as The Official Trump (TRUMP) and The Official Melania Meme (MELANIA), which collectively brought in hundreds of millions of dollars through sales and transaction fees.
Related: President Trump admits the US is in a trade war with China
According to the FT report, the TRUMP meme coin brought in $362 million in profits for the family, and Melania earned $65 million. Notably, while the TRUMP meme coin is down over 90% from its all-time high, Melania’s performance is even worse, down over 99% from its all-time high.
In the end, the Trump family received $42 million from USD1, a stablecoin issued by World Liberty. Since its launch in early April, the Trump family-backed stablecoin has become the world’s fifth-largest stablecoin with a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, according to CoinMarketCap.
Meanwhile, Trump’s personal stake in Trump Media & Technology Group, Truth Social’s parent company and Bitcoin asset manager, is currently valued at about $1.9 billion, the FT reported.
On Wednesday, Erebor, backed by billionaire Peter Thiel, received preliminary approval from regulators to form a bank aimed at serving crypto, AI and tech startups. The bank reportedly has ties to President Trump.
Related: Bitcoin miners gather as President Trump eases concerns about tariffs on China
President Trump’s cryptocurrency venture relies on financial firm
Last week, it was reported that the startup behind President Trump’s official meme coin is aiming to raise at least $200 million to build a digital asset vault that will aim to buy back tokens to increase their value.
In August, ALT5 Sigma Corporation announced plans to raise $1.5 billion by selling 200 million shares of common stock at $7.50 per share to shore up WLFI’s finances.
magazine: EU’s privacy-destroying chat control bill postponed, but the fight isn’t over