Trump turns crypto influence into income with $57m windfall

President Donald Trump has reported $57.4 million in income from World Liberty Financial, his cryptocurrency venture backed by sons Donald Jr. and Eric Trump.

According to the Financial Times, citing a 200-page filing, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics discloses that one of Trump’s largest revenue sources among hundreds of financial interests is his crypto venture.

The filing shows Trump holds 15.75 billion governance tokens in World Liberty Financial. Instead of a direct investment, the tokens were obtained through his promotional activities on the network.

The report also shows that Trump holds positions in holding companies linked to digital ventures, such as CIC Digital LLC and CIC Ventures LLC, though these entities reported little to no income.

The document includes Trump’s certification that the information provided is “true, complete, and correct to the best of [his] knowledge,” and is subject to review by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

Earlier this year, Trump removed David Huitema as director of the Office of Government Ethics, an independent agency responsible for overseeing ethics rules and financial disclosures for the executive branch.

Trump’s crypto fortune fuels conflict-of-interest concerns

According to 2024 SEC filings, Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, was a “promoter” of the World Liberty Financial initiative. The venture operates as a decentralized finance platform offering cryptocurrency lending and trading services.

Since it launched last year, World Liberty Financial sold 21 billion tokens in a public offering, generating $1 billion in funding.

Trump’s involvement appears legal on the surface, but Democrats and some Republicans have flagged Trump’s willingness to profit while in office as a conflict of interest —particularly since the president holds substantial crypto stakes while influencing policy.

SEC Chair Paul Atkins has dropped several high-profile enforcement cases against cryptocurrency companies since taking office. This has created a more favorable regulatory environment for the industry, one in which Trump has seemingly granted investors access to the executive branch if they’re Official Trump (TRUMP) owners.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top House Democrat, recently opened a probe into the private dinner Trump hosted for top investors in his meme coin.

In addition to World Liberty Financial, Trump Media & Technology Group declared its intention to raise $2.5 billion for a “bitcoin treasury” strategy and to introduce a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund.

Major investor backs Trump crypto ventures

DRW Investments, controlled by Chicago trader Don Wilson, invested $100 million in Trump Media just nine weeks after Cumberland, Wilson’s crypto liquidity provider, received SEC enforcement relief.

Cumberland won dismissal of a civil complaint alleging unregistered securities dealer violations in March. Prior to the SEC dropping charges under the new leadership, the Biden administration had pursued the matter.

DRW’s investment makes it among the largest financiers of Trump Media’s cryptocurrency expansion plans. The funding supports the company’s ambitions to acquire over $2 billion in cryptocurrency holdings and establish bitcoin treasury operations.