Trump family reaps billions from crypto ventures as investors lose similar amounts: Reuters

An investigation by Reuters, based on blockchain records, company filings, financial reports, and interviews with dozens of investors, reveals that cryptocurrency ventures established or supported by Donald Trump and his family have yielded billions for the Trumps while inflicting substantial losses on over a million investors in the past two years.

Since January 2025, the Trump family has reportedly garnered at least $2.3 billion in revenue from these crypto projects. Concurrently, investors who put their money into Trump-linked digital assets have suffered total losses estimated at approximately $2.3 billion during the same period. Reuters examined four prominent Trump-associated ventures: World Liberty Financial, the $TRUMP meme coin, American Bitcoin, and AI Financial Corp.

A common thread among these projects, according to Reuters, is the Trump family's central role in promotion, despite their limited financial exposure. Donald Trump, along with his sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., actively promoted these ventures through social media, rallies, and international events. While investor interest surged, leading to hundreds of millions of dollars being raised, subsequent sharp declines in asset prices resulted in significant investor losses.

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the Trump family's limited financial risk while playing a central role in the promotion of the ventures.

Accounting and cryptocurrency experts consulted by Reuters found the methodology used to calculate the Trump family's earnings to be reasonable and consistent. World Liberty Financial emerged as the largest revenue source, generating over $1.4 billion for the Trump family from the sale of its governance tokens, which promised influence in the platform's future. The family also reportedly earned about $230 million from other platform activities. However, the market value of these tokens has since plummeted, with World Liberty investors losing an estimated $674 million.

Investors in World Liberty have voiced significant complaints, particularly regarding restrictions on selling tokens. The company initially allowed investors to sell only 20% of their holdings, later deciding that the remaining tokens would not be fully released until 2030. One European investor recounted buying three million tokens for $45,000 in January 2025, only to find most of their assets still unsellable. This investor described the system as a "mechanism designed to extract as much money as possible from investors."

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mechanism designed to extract as much money as possible from investors.