United States

Trump earned more than 1.4 billion dollars with cryptocurrencies in the first year of his second term

The White House denies that there is a conflict of interest, even though a good part of the benefits coming from the crypto business are related to presidential decisions

The presidency has become Donald Trump's most profitable asset, as reflected in his latest financial disclosure. During the first year of his second term, the Republican earned over 1.4 billion dollars thanks to cryptocurrency businesses. In total, Trump has raked in over 2.2 billion dollars since taking office on January 20, 2025. The sum far exceeds the at least 622 million dollars his companies generated during 2024. Currently, the Republican's fortune is estimated at 6.5 billion dollars. Before stepping back into the Oval Office and winning the 2024 election, the figure was more modest: Forbes estimated it at around 2.3 billion dollars.One of the catalysts for the wealth that Trump has accumulated this past year is the World Liberty Financial platform, founded in 2024 by his three sons and the son of special envoy Steve Witkoff, Zach Witkoff. In early January 2025, before the inauguration, an Emirati fund linked to the royal family of Abu Dhabi bought 49% of the business's shares. Shortly after, Trump decided to dedicate his return's first presidential trip to the Gulf petrostates, instead of following the tradition of visiting one of the neighboring countries, Canada or Mexico. Also, shortly after the entry of Emirati capital, the White House reached an agreement with Abu Dhabi to export artificial intelligence-powered chips to them, despite reservations from some national security officials.But this Wednesday, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly again denied the existence of a conflict of interest following the publication of her boss's financial disclosure. “All actions by President Trump and his administration are taken in the best interest of the American people, and anyone calling themselves a “reporter” who pushes otherwise is recycling the same tired, false narrative that Democrats and mainstream media have been pushing for a decade,” she assured. GENIUS Act

World Liberty's plans, however, are even more ambitious: the company launched a dollar-pegged stablecoin last March, dubbed USD1, and has the backing of the U.S. Treasury. Although the president always excuses himself by saying he knows nothing about family businesses and that his children manage everything, very conveniently last year he signed the GENIUS Act. This is a law that creates the first legal framework for stablecoins like the USD1 launched by World Liberty. The rule establishes a series of protections for buyers of stablecoins to foster trust and use among consumers. A few months before signing the law, the Department of Justice dismantled the unit dedicated to investigating crypto-scams and crypto-crimes. The man who at the time scorned the cryptocurrency business as a scam, now signs regulations to promote its use while fattening a good part of his fortune thanks to this world. World Liberty Financial does not solely hold the title of the golden goose. The memecoin that the president launched shortly before his inauguration, $TRUMP, has resulted in the president pocketing 635 million dollars during 2025. No one overlooks the exclusive dinner that the president organized when he launched the coin, where the condition for attending was to be one of the main 220 buyers. The opportunity to dine behind closed doors with a President of the United States translated into a collection of 148 million dollars. Cryptocurrencies have transformed the president's fortune in a very short time. While during his first term, a large part of his fortune (then estimated between 2.3 million and 2.5 million dollars) was based on real estate, golf courses, and the classic businesses of the Trump clan. These sources of income continue to generate profits for the president and his family, but not at the same pace as cryptocurrencies.The release of the financial disclosure comes shortly after the Republican managed to get his own administration would reach an out-of-court settlement to grant him tax immunity for himself, his family, and the Trump Organization. In a statement signed by the current acting attorney general and former president's lawyer, Todd Blanche, the U.S. Tax Agency agreed that it was "forever prohibited" examine or prosecute "any" tax claim against Trump, his children and the Trump Organization.