Trump's Crypto Empire — Knee Deep in Trouble or Bamboozling Everyone Again?

Since his presidential inauguration, Donalt Trump made giant leaps towards financial markets, both in terms of influencing them with Tariff Wars on the whole world, and by leaning towards crypto. Some say Trump is using his position to profit off market volatility he himself caused. Let’s dissect the Trump Family’s crypto ventures and see if it’s true that Trump abuses his power for profit and elects loyal people to rule the Federal Reserve? 

Surface-level tensions between American Bitcoin and its Shareholders

Early Investors of American Bitcoin are exiting the project. Shares of mining company American Bitcoin temporarily fell by 51%. The reason for the decline stated as the lifting of restrictions on the sale of shares (lock-up expiry), which allowed early investors to sell large stakes.

Eric Trump stated on social media that American Bitcoin's fundamentals remain strong and that he personally holds all of his ABTC shares. The Nasdaq exchange issued a warning to ALT5 Sigma about non-compliance with listing requirements due to the late filing of its third quarter 2025 report.

ALT5 Sigma is a public company that entered into a $1.5 billion deal with WLFI in the summer and effectively acted as a reserve treasury fund for WLFI tokens. ALT5 Sigma has to submit a plan to restore compliance with Nasdaq listing requirements until January 20, 2026.

Recently, media reports have emerged about personnel changes at ALT5 Sigma, which are linked to pressure from Democrats on WLFI. In a follow-up investigation, Congress has released a report stating that the Trump family used the presidency to generate income through crypto projects.

The Trump family earned $864 million in revenue from cryptocurrency projects

Since Trump’s presidency, Trump Organization revenue grew sixteenfold. The Trump Organization's revenue for the first half of 2025 increased from $51 million to $864 million. More than 90% of this revenue came from crypto projects: World Liberty Financial (WLFI) and the memecoin TRUMP. WLFI tokens brought in $463 million, while the TRUMP memecoin brought in over $336 million.

The WLFI platform has not yet been fully launched, and the tokens are being sold largely thanks to the Trump family's fame. The main investor in WLFI is Aqua1 Foundation (UAE), which is linked to Guren “Bobby” Zhou, who is under investigation in the UK for money laundering. Aqua1 purchased $100 million worth of WLFI tokens, the largest purchase at the time.

Other investors include Justin Sun (TRX), against whom the SEC has filed a fraud case, but after Trump's return to the White House, the investigation was suspended. More than 70% of the largest WLFI wallets belong to foreign investors from the UAE, China, and Korea. 

World Liberty Financial issued the stablecoin USD1, which was used in a $2 billion deal between MGX (UAE) and Binance. MGX is controlled by Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed, brother of the president of the UAE. WLFI receives a percentage of the income from assets backing USD1 — about $80 million per year. After this deal, CZ, founder of Binance, received a pardon from president Trump. 

Donald Trump simultaneously regulated the crypto market while his family profited from crypto projects. Investors paid for access and influence, not technology. On the WLFI website, Donald Trump is listed as a “co-founder emeritus,” which reinforces the connection to power. Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. conduct international investment tours in Dubai, Seoul, Bulgaria, and London.

In Bulgaria, Donald Trump Jr. spoke at the Nexo conference, which had previously been fined by the SEC. A month later, Nexo became a sponsor of a tournament at Trump's golf course (a contract worth approximately $10 million).

Source: Reuters

Donald Trump used his presidential office to develop his family's crypto projects

According to a report by the US Congress, members of the Trump family turned state resources into a source of personal income through investments in cryptocurrencies. The family's crypto assets are estimated to be worth $11.6 billion, with revenues exceeding $800 million in six months.

The central element of the scheme was World Liberty Financial (WLFI), through which large investments were made, including investments from foreign organizations interested in influencing the administration.

WLFI was launched by members of the Trump family and used as a channel to raise capital in exchange for access to and interaction with government structures.

The report cites instances of interference in investigations against crypto companies supporting Trump's projects: Coinbase, Gemini, Robinhood, Ripple (XRP), Crypto.com (CRO), Uniswap (UNI), Yuga Labs, and Kraken (INK). Donald Trump allegedly granted pardons and lifted sanctions for individuals who supported initiatives of his inner circle.

WLFI and the TRUMP memecoin were promoted through public statements by the president, which contributed to the growth of their capitalization and the family's income. The use of WLFI and other assets shows how the Trump family's investments were directly linked to political influence.

US Democratic senators initiate investigation into Trump family's crypto project

US senators have demanded an investigation into the World Liberty Financial (WLFI) crypto project linked to the Trump family due to possible ties to Russia and North Korea. Democrats Elizabeth Warren and Jack Reed have sent requests to the Department of Justice and the Department of the Treasury.

According to their data, WLFI tokens could have been sold to entities linked to North Korea, Russia, and other sanctioned organizations, potentially posing a threat to national security. Up to 75% of the proceeds from the sale of WLFI tokens go to the Trump family, creating a situation where profits could be generated through transactions with sanctioned organizations.

According to information from open sources, some of the WLFI tokens ended up in wallets linked to the North Korean Lazarus Group, as well as sanctioned Russian and Iranian addresses. Lazarus Group is a cyber group linked to North Korea that engages in hacking attacks to steal money, cryptocurrency, and confidential information.

Reports of personnel changes at ALT5 Sigma began to appear in the media. They are linked to increased pressure from Democrats on WLFI. ALT5 Sigma is a Nasdaq-listed company that entered into a deal worth $1.5 billion with WLFI in the summer. This deal effectively made ALT5 the reserve treasury fund for WLFI tokens.

Source: Businesswire.com

Following the deal, WLFI co-founder Zach Witkoff became chairman of the board of directors of ALT5, Eric Trump was granted observer status on the board, and the company began positioning itself as a tool for investors focused on WLFI tokens.

At the same time, internal labor changes occurred at ALT5: the board of directors sent the CEO and top managers on “vacation” until the official report, which attracted the attention of the SEC in terms of disclosure of information for public issuers. Against the backdrop of regulatory pressure and political noise surrounding WLFI, the CEO, COO, and other executives began to leave ALT5.

Source: Х

Donald Trump's son gets involved in a contract with the Pentagon

The US Department of Defense has allocated $620 million to the little-known company Vulcan Elements, which deals in rare earth metals and magnet production.

Publicly Known Details of the deal:

• Three months before the contract was signed, the startup received investment from the 1789 Capital fund, managed by Donald Trump Jr.
• Vulcan Elements employs about 30 people, but it has received the largest loan in the history of the Pentagon's Strategic Capital Office.
• This is the fourth campaign supported by the 1789 Capital fund to receive federal funding in 2025, totaling more than $735 million.
• Vulcan Elements and the Department of Defense claim that Trump Jr.'s fund was not involved in the negotiations and that the funding decision was made based on the company's merits.

The funding is part of a $1.4 billion deal aimed at developing rare earth magnet supply chains in the United States.

Source: Incrypted.com

Donald Trump named Kevin Hassett as a “potential” future head of the US Federal Reserve.The probability of appointment is 83%, according to Polymarket forecasts.

Who is Kevin Hassett

Hassett is one of Donald Trump's key economic advisors and former director of the White House National Economic Council. He is considered the chief ideologist of “trumponomics.” He regularly criticizes the Federal Reserve for “excessively high” interest rates and advocates for their “aggressive reduction.”

Hassett's ties to the crypto industry:

• He worked as an advisor to Coinbase.
• He has $1–5 million in COIN shares on his balance sheet. 
• In the Trump administration, he participated in the development of recommendations for regulating the crypto market.

What this could mean:

• The media notes that Hassett's appointment could lead to a restructuring of financial regulation in the US.
• The vector is towards greater integration of digital assets into the monetary system. 
• In fact, Hassett could become the first head of the Fed to systematically bring the crypto market into the central bank's policy framework.

New statements from Donald Trump:

• US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin does not want to take the position of Fed chair.
• Trump will announce the name of the new Fed chair in early 2026.
• Even Jamie Dimon (CEO of JPMorgan) said that Powell is obliged to lower the Fed rate.

Source: Incrypted.com

“Tariff dividends” from Tariff War to start in 2026

Donald Trump plans to start paying $2,000 to middle- and low-income Americans as early as mid-2026.

The funds for these “tariff dividends” are to come from revenues from increased import duties. Analysts estimate that the initiative will cost the budget approximately $450 billion per year, while the actual revenues from tariffs are significantly lower, which calls into question the financial sustainability of the program.

Cardano co-founder on Trump

Cardano co-founder Charles Hoskinson said that the policies of US President Donald Trump's administration have not had the expected effect on the crypto market.

According to Hoskinson, many industry participants, including himself, had hoped for a positive impact after Trump's statements, who made cryptocurrencies one of the key themes of his campaign during the election. Hoskinson noted that the initial enthusiasm proved to be excessive and led to situations where interference in the traditional four-year market cycle created additional complications.

He added a metaphor that support from a strong player can be excessive. “Now, the community has to adapt to the new regulatory environment and adjust its expectations regarding the role of the state in the development of the crypto industry”.

Source: Bitexpert.io 

Eric Trump showed off American Bitcoin's mining farm

Eric Trump, co-founder of American Bitcoin and son of former US President Donald Trump, posted a video from the company's mining farm in Texas. In the video, he showed how the equipment works and talked about the scale of the site.

According to Eric Trump, the farm uses American electricity to mine Bitcoin. The facility has about 35,000 liquid-cooled servers. He noted that the farm produces about 2% of the world's Bitcoin daily.

Eric Trump also commented on criticism of cryptocurrency: in his opinion, the claim that digital assets are “intangible” is not true, and the farm serves as a living example of how the network works. He published the information on his Instagram.

Source: Instagram

A few days after the video was published, the shares of the mining company American Bitcoin, co-founded by Eric Trump, fell by about 50%.

Source: Google.com

Eric Trump: Bitcoin is evolving faster than the old financial system can react

Why investors are choosing BTC now:

• Over the past three years, the price of Bitcoin has risen from $16,000 to $91,000, reaching a peak of $120,000.
• ETFs, banks, investment funds, and even governments are actively entering the cryptocurrency market.
• Bitcoin has become an international asset: from the UAE to El Salvador, it is included in national balance sheets, and large corporations from the Fortune 500 are doing the same.

Debanking and circumventing restrictions:

Capital One, JPMorgan, and Bank of America closed hundreds of accounts belonging to the Trump family. Political decisions can instantly shut down the traditional financial system. In crypto, you can transfer millions of dollars on the weekend without SWIFT and bank approvals.Blockchain vs. traditional banks:

• Banks earn money by freezing funds for 72 hours, especially on weekends.
• In the traditional system, transfers made after 5 p.m. wait until Monday, and SWIFT works slowly.
• Cryptocurrency allows you to make transfers around the clock, without intermediaries, notaries, or hidden fees.

Blockchain can replace all the processes that banks do slowly, expensively, and opaquely.Tokenization as a new capital market:

• The Trump Organization is already launching tokenized projects in Dubai and the Maldives, opening up access to luxury real estate even with small amounts of money.
• The goal is simple: to give ordinary people the opportunity to invest in large assets, not just banks and closed-end funds.
• Almost everything, from art and music to Hollywood, commodities, and real estate, will eventually become tokens on the blockchain.

For example, a fan of Taylor Swift can invest $200 in a new album or buy 0.01% of it, becoming a co-owner of the project.

BTC forecasts:

• Every Bitcoin decline is accompanied by statements about its “death,” but the price invariably recovers.
• Over the past 10 years, BTC has proven to be one of the most profitable assets.
• The $1,000,000 target remains unchanged — it's just a matter of time.
• Pension funds are entering the market, volatility is decreasing, and capital is becoming “stable”.

American Bitcoin and mining:

• American Bitcoin went public on Nasdaq and showed a margin of 56% with a profit of $3.5 million.
• The company mines BTC at almost half the market average cost thanks to Hut8's infrastructure, cheap energy in Texas, and capacity that accounts for 2% of global mining.
• The key indicator is the amount of BTC per share, i.e., the growth of each investor's share of Bitcoin, not just the growth in price.

Source: Bitexpert.io

World Liberty Financial enters the Real World Asset Market

In January 2026, World Liberty Financial plans to launch a series of real asset-backed (RWA) products, according to Reuters. The company owned by Donald Trump's family intends to tokenize resources such as oil, gas, cotton, timber, and other commodities.

Earlier, at the Token2049 conference in Singapore, Zach Whitcoff said that Donald Trump's family company is taking on oil, gas, cotton, and timber — all of which are to be traded on the blockchain.

All such assets will be pegged to the USD1 stablecoin, which is already among the top five stablecoins in the world ($2.7 billion in capitalization).

Token2049 is one of the largest international conferences on cryptocurrencies and blockchain, bringing together leading industry players: investors, entrepreneurs, startups, representatives of blockchain projects, and regulators.

Source: Х

Melania Trump launches her own film company, MUSE FILMS

The first project has already been announced — a feature film called MELANIA, which is set to premiere on January 30, 2026.

Source: Х

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