Abu Dhabi royal invested in Trump crypto venture, WSJ says
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A White House spokesperson told the WSJ that Mr Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children.
PHOTO: REUTERS
WASHINGTON – An Abu Dhabi royal signed a secret deal with the Trump family to buy a stake in their cryptocurrency venture, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing company documents and people familiar with the matter.
Emissaries of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan inked a deal with Mr Eric Trump to purchase a 49 per cent stake in World Liberty Financial
The first installment was US$250 million, of which US$187 million was directed to Trump family entities, the paper said.
At least US$31 million was set to go to entities linked with the family of Mr Steve Witkoff, a World Liberty co-founder and the US special envoy to the Middle East.
Another US$31 million went to an entity tied to the crypto venture’s other co-founders Zak Folkman and Mr Chase Herro, the WSJ said.
“Neither President Trump nor Steve Witkoff had any involvement whatsoever in this transaction and have had no involvement in World Liberty Financial since taking office,” World Liberty Financial spokesman David Wachsman said in a statement to Bloomberg in response to the report, adding the company made the deal in question for its own interest.
“The idea that, when raising capital, a privately-held American company should be held to some unique standard that no other similar company would be held is both ridiculous and un-American,” he said.
A White House spokesperson told the WSJ that Mr Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children.
The paper cited a person familiar with Sheikh Tahnoon’s investment that the sheikh and a few co-investors completed a deal in World Liberty after reviewing it for some months.
The Wall Street Journal said the remaining US$250 million was due by July 15, 2025, and it could not determine how the funds may have been distributed.
Sheikh Tahnoon is the United Arab Emirates national security adviser, a deputy ruler of the emirate and was handed charge in 2023 of the US$1 trillion Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. BLOOMBERG
