Trump's crypto empire: Big profits, bigger questions | Who’s investing, what’s at stake, and why it matters

Of that total, $802 million -- more than 90 per cent -- came from crypto-related ventures, including the sale of WLFI tokens. By comparison, traditional Trump income sources such as golf clubs, resorts and licensing deals accounted for only modest sums.

A key sale took place on June 26, when the blockchain firm Alt5 Sigma announced a $100 million purchase of WLFI tokens -- the largest known purchase at the time. Records showed that the Trump family stood to gain around $500 million from that single deal.

Yet beneath the headline figures lies a business model with major red flags. Finance experts told Reuters that the underlying technologies are weak, the promise of platform utility is faint, and the key attraction seems to be the family’s brand rather than any breakthrough architecture.

“Without the Trump name, you wouldn’t see World Liberty Financial raising this kind of money,” said Seoyoung Kim, a finance professor at Santa Clara University.

International investors fuel the pump

While token sales did include U.S. investors, the bulk of early funding came from overseas. A blockchain-analytics review of the 50 largest WLFI wallets found that 36 were likely connected to foreign buyers holding a combined $804 million in tokens. Only four wallets were clearly linked to US investors.

Large buyers included the UAE-based Aqua1 Foundation, which in June announced it would buy $100 million of WLFI tokens. Among its founders is Chinese-born crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, who had previously been charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission for selling unregistered crypto securities. Reuters determined that Sun stood to send about $56 million to the Trump family under the terms of the token purchases.

Meanwhile, a state-controlled Abu Dhabi firm, MGX, used WLFI’s Stablecoin, USD1, to buy a $2 billion equity stake in the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance. The deal channelled interest payments into a Trump-linked affiliate and deepened concerns about foreign money flows and conflicts of interest.

Ethical and political questions

Though the activity may be legal, ethicists say it raises serious conflicts of interest and governance concerns. “These people are not pouring money into coffers of the Trump family business because of the brothers’ acumen,” said Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University. “They are doing it because they want freedom from legal constraints and impunity that only the president can deliver.”

Former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter described the arrangement as “legal but unethical.” He noted that while there is no explicit promise of access to the president, the perception of influence remains potent.

Plaintiffs expressed concern that this structure could undermine regulatory integrity and national governance. Yet despite repeated requests, the Trump Organization did not provide detailed accounting of token benefits to holders, and both Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump declined to comment.

Crypto platform, but what’s the product?

WLFI promotes a blockchain-based platform for digital assets and loans. But Reuters found that the platform exists largely in promise, not in meaningful architecture. The key token sale launched in October 2024, and although WLFI allowed token trading in September of this year, performance plunged rapidly -- initial trading at 31 cents rose to 46 cents before collapsing roughly 65%. The token now trades near 14 cents.

Despite heavy promotion, WLFI token holders get only limited governance rights and no clear share of profits, which is curious, given how many crypto-platform tokens offer revenue participation. Academia and industry specialists told Reuters this structure places more value on branding than substance.

In a letter to Reuters, WLFI’s legal adviser, Timothy Parlatore, defended the offering, saying the project was “real utility” and the analysis in the investigation was “inaccurate and misleading.” He declined to provide detail on exactly how holders benefit.

The political angle: Blurring business and power

Most strikingly, the crypto effort coincided with a marked shift in US regulators. Under Trump’s second term, enforcement staff for crypto were slashed, bank-cryptocurrency guidance was removed, and the SEC paused or dropped major cases.

The close alignment between the Trump family’s crypto rollout and a policy push to deregulate crypto markets has sparked broad concerns. Financial transactions involving crypto, foreign investors and political figures pose potential grey zones for oversight and influence. Congress has asked the Office of Government Ethics to investigate the stablecoin deal, citing possible violations of the Emoluments Clause.

With the president’s family benefiting so heavily from digital-asset sales and global outreach campaigns, questions have been raised about whether the business ventures and public office are being mixed in ways that undermine good governance.

Foreign investors, big money, big risk

Foreign buyers played a major role in fuelling the token sales. Many attending international crypto events were drawn by Trump’s name and promise of access. For example, Seoul-based venture firm Oddiyana Ventures invested in WLFI, with founder Dorji Rabten telling Reuters: “In the first very moment where we saw the project, we thought it’s going to be very huge, obviously, given the fact it’s a president’s sons taking up that project.”

The purchasing entities often lacked transparency; some buyers have histories of regulatory problems. One adviser linked to the deals was under investigation in the UK for money-laundering allegations.

Since crypto wallets provide anonymity, it remains difficult to trace the ultimate owners of many token holdings. That complicates oversight efforts and raises concerns about money flows, influence and accountability.

What it means going forward

The Reuters investigation demonstrates how the Trump family -- already a business empire and political power centre -- has embraced crypto as a fast lane to wealth. The near-term gains are real, but many risks remain unaddressed.

Investors are exposed to volatile valuations and weak corporate disclosures. Regulators face a challenge in tracking foreign flows tied to politically connected entities. And the mix of business, crypto evangelism and public office raises deeper questions about the boundaries of power.

In short, the Trump family’s crypto machine is profitable, global and in many ways opaque. As one expert put it, the business model offers access, prestige and a powerful brand. But according to the same expert, it offers little beyond that. The question remains whether regulators, investors and the public can hold that system to account.

For all the headlines about profit and token launches, the platform underpinning this operation is still more idea than engine. The risk now is not just to investors, but to the fabric of how power, money and digital assets interact in a system meant to serve the public, not a presidency.