Latest news with #JustinSun
The Star
a day ago
- Business
- The Star
UAE fund buys $100 million of Trump's World Liberty tokens
FILE PHOTO: Hong Kong-based crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, World Liberty Financial co-founder Zach Witkoff and Executive Vice President of the Trump Organization Eric Trump attend the TOKEN2049 conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, May 1, 2025. REUTERS/Federico Maccioni/File Photo LONDON (Reuters) -A United Arab Emirates-based fund has bought $100 million worth of digital tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, the crypto venture of U.S. President Donald Trump's family, becoming its largest publicly known investor. Aqua 1 Foundation said in a statement on Thursday its purchase of the tokens, known as $WLFI, sought to speed up the creation of a "blockchain-powered financial ecosystem" with stablecoins and tokenised traditional assets at its heart. A spokesperson for World Liberty confirmed the investment to Reuters. A so-called governance token, $WLFI cannot be traded but gives holders the right to vote on changes to the business' underlying code. World Liberty said this week it was "working behind the scenes" to make the token transferable. "WLFI and Aqua 1 will jointly identify and nurture high-potential blockchain projects together," Aqua 1 founding partner Dave Lee said in the statement. The fund's investment and compliance teams would help World Liberty expand in South America, Europe and Asia, it added. Despite its investment, Aqua 1 maintains a minimal online presence. Its X account has only three posts and approximately 1,120 followers while its website was created on May 28, according to data from two web domain trackers. World Liberty also plans to support the launch of a separate Aqua 1 fund aimed at boosting the "digital economy transformation" in the Middle East through blockchain and artificial intelligence, the statement said. Aqua 1 did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and the World Liberty spokesperson had no further immediate comment. Launched two months before the 2024 U.S. presidential election by Trump and his business partners, World Liberty has yielded hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for the Republican president's family business. World Liberty has drawn criticism from Democratic lawmakers and government ethics watchdogs over potential conflicts of interest. The Trump Organization has said the president's investments, assets and business interests are held in a trust managed by his children. World Liberty aims to open access to financial services via digital tokens, without intermediaries such as banks. It has launched a stablecoin called USD1 that was bolstered in May when an Abu Dhabi investment firm chose it for a $2 billion investment in giant crypto exchange Binance. (Reporting by Tom Wilson in London; Editing by Frances Kerry and Louise Heavens)
The National
2 days ago
- Business
- The National
UAE-based fund invests $100m in Trump's crypto project
A fund based in the UAE said on Thursday that it has purchased $100 million of World Liberty Financial tokens, which are part of US President Donald Trump's crypto project. In a joint statement, Aqua 1 and World Liberty Financial said the investment will help speed up the creation of a blockchain financial ecosystem and stablecoin integration. "We're excited to work hand-in-hand with the team at Aqua 1,' said Zak Folkman, co-founder of World Liberty Financial. The purchase makes Aqua 1 one of the largest investors in the Trump family project. The company has also received major backing from crypto billionaire Justin Sun. Aqua 1 is the second UAE-based firm to back World Liberty Financial in recent months. Abu Dhabi-based technology investment company MGX in May used World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin to make a $2 billion investment in Binance. 'WLFI and Aqua 1 will jointly identify and nurture high-potential blockchain projects together,' said Aqua 1 founding partner David Lee. World Liberty Financial said it also plans to support the launch of the Aqua 1 Aqua Fund, which it said is a UAE-domiciled investment fund dedicated to accelerating the Middle East's digital economy. Aqua 1 also said it will assist World Liberty Financial to expand across South America, Europe, Asia and emerging markets. Both companies also plan to develop "BlockRock", a real world asset tokenisation platform focused on integrating traditional assets into the Web3 ecosystem.
Bloomberg
2 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Trump's Crypto Project Gets $100 Million From UAE-Based Fund
A little known crypto fund bought $100 million of World Liberty Financial Inc. tokens, the second Middle East-based investor to put money into the Trump family affiliated decentralized finance platform. United Arab Emirates based Aqua 1 Foundation said it purchased the so-called governance tokens, in a joint statement Thursday with World Liberty. The investment will make Aqua 1 the largest individual investor of the Trump-backed digital asset project, surpassing crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun, who's also an adviser to World Liberty.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Small Investment Bank Tied to Trump's Sons Facilitated $120 Million Trading Windfall
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. A minor investment bank, guided by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, has enabled a relatively unknown toymaker to make a profitable shift to cryptocurrency, causing its stock to skyrocket by more than 500%. What Happened: Dominari Holdings Inc., where the Trump brothers are advisors, played a key role in two transactions within a month that resulted in a $120 million profit. Dominari initially helped an investment fund, overseen by its senior executive Soo Yu, to purchase a stake in the struggling toymaker SRM Entertainment Inc. Trending: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing — Last week, SRM revealed plans to rebrand as Tron Inc., with crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun joining as an advisor. This announcement caused SRM's stock to jump from less than $2 to over $9, yielding significant profits for Dominari, Soo Yu, and the fund she manages, reports Bloomberg. The fund's stake, acquired for $5 million in May, was valued at $127 million by Tuesday night. While the Trump family holds advisory positions at Dominari, there is no proof of their participation in these transactions. Nonetheless, this swift profit contributes to the financial wins of executives linked with the Trump family over the past year, especially in the cryptocurrency sector. SRM's metamorphosis includes a strategic shift towards buying virtual tokens associated with Sun's crypto platform. This step signifies another expansion to the growing network of crypto-related ventures connected to Trump allies. Although the ultimate recipients of the investment fund's successful wager are yet to be determined, Dominari and Yu were given warrants for their involvement in the May deal, which rose in value from $230,000 to $3.8 million by It Matters: The sudden windfall for SRM Entertainment Inc., now Tron Inc., highlights the growing influence of cryptocurrency in reshaping traditional industries. The involvement of high-profile figures such as the Trump brothers and Justin Sun further underscores the mainstream acceptance of digital currencies. This event also draws attention to the potential for significant financial gains in the crypto sector, even for struggling businesses. Read Next: Invest early in CancerVax's breakthrough tech aiming to disrupt a $231B market. Back a bold new approach to cancer treatment with high-growth potential. If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends would you invest in it? Image: Shutterstock/Consolidated News Photos This article Small Investment Bank Tied to Trump's Sons Facilitated $120 Million Trading Windfall originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Independent
4 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
A look at the major players in the crypto industry and their ties to Trump
President Donald Trump took office in January pledging to 'make America the crypto capital of the world." He has since harnessed wide swaths of the federal government to bolster the industry — all while raking in huge sums of money for his family's business. By some estimates, crypto ventures now account for nearly 40% of the Trump Organization's $2.9 billion net worth. But the Republican president's championing of the industry has been just as big a boon for many of the industry's top names. Many have seen their profits and political standing soar, while investigations of potential wrongdoing and other legal entanglements led by the administration of Trump's predecessor, Democratic President Joe Biden, have largely fallen away. Here's a look at some of the crypto industry's top leaders and their ties to Trump: Justin Sun A Chinese-born crypto entrepreneur and founder of the cryptocurrency platform Tron, Sun is best known for buying a piece of conceptual art consisting of a banana duct-taped to a wall for $6.2 million and subsequently eating the banana. Ties to Trump: Sun was the top investor in Trump's meme coin, $Trump, and secured the top spot at the president's recent crypto dinner, which was held at Trump's golf course just outside Washington. Sun posted a professionally produced video of himself receiving a $100,000 gold watch that Trump's meme coin awarded to the top four investors. Sun also recently bragged about his close ties to the White House, posting in Chinese on X 'It's all true' over a series of posts listing his links to the president and his meme coin. Sun was sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission under Biden for working to artificially inflate the price of crypto, an investigation that has been paused since Trump took office. Sun was an early and important investor in World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture Trump and his sons Eric and Donald Jr. launched in September. The president's most recent financial disclosure report reveals he made more than $57 million last year from World Liberty Financial, which has launched USD1, a stablecoin pegged at a 1-to-1 ratio to the U.S. dollar. Michael Saylor The co-founder and chair of Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, Saylor is one of bitcoin's most prominent and outspoken evangelists. He owns a yacht once featured on 'Entourage,' and his is the most high-profile bitcoin treasury company, which is a type of firm primarily focused on buying and holding bitcoin as its business model. Strategy currently holds more than 2% of all outstanding bitcoins in circulation and is constantly buying more. Ties to Trump: Trump Media, the parent company of the president's social media platform, Truth Social, has announced it will raise $2.5 billion from institutional investors to buy bitcoin in an attempt to build up a cryptocurrency reserve, similar to what Saylor's company is best known for. Saylor met in January with Eric Trump at the president's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, and the president's son has spoken publicly about how he and Saylor were friends who knew each other in New York two decades ago. Saylor also attended the president's first crypto summit at the White House in March. 'All of us owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude,' Eric Trump said of Saylor, praising him at the recent annual bitcoin conference in Las Vegas as an effective spokesperson for the crypto community. Changpeng Zhao Known universally as CZ, Zhao is founder and former CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. He was sentenced last year to four months in prison for failing to stop criminals from using the platform to move money connected to child sex abuse, drug trafficking and terrorism. Zhao was released in September. Ties to Trump: World Liberty Financial recently announced that an investment fund in the United Arab Emirates would be using $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance. Zhao also has publicly said that he's asked Trump for a pardon that could nullify his conviction. Brian Armstrong Co-founder and CEO of Coinbase, a major cryptocurrency exchange, Armstrong has been a key figure in the crypto industry's push into politics. Ties to Trump: Armstrong and Coinbase were major donors to a political action committee that helped Trump and other pro-crypto candidates. He met with Trump weeks after Election Day and attended the White House crypto summit. Coinbase hired Trump's former campaign manager, Chris LaCivita, to its Global Advisory Council. Trump also addressed, via prerecorded video message, Coinbase's State of Crypto Summit this month. The Winklevoss Twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss founded the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange and are most famous to the general public for suing Mark Zuckerberg over the creation of Facebook, an important plot point in the movie 'The Social Network.' In 2023, Biden's SEC sued Gemini for selling unregistered securities, another case that's been paused since Trump took office. Ties to Trump: The twins each pledged $1 million donations to the Trump campaign, as well as lavish donations to Elon Musk's political group – though some of the donations to Trump's campaign were returned because the Winklevoss brothers had violated federal limits. They were invited to Trump's crypto summit and praised the president's approach to the sector then. Addressing the crypto conference in Las Vegas, Vice President JD Vance said the brothers 'really helped break the dam' and persuade tech sector leaders to support Trump's campaign. 'I think they were some of the first big names in Silicon Valley to take that step, and a whole host of people followed them,' Vance said. David Bailey Bailey is the CEO of BTC Inc., an influential holding company with ventures throughout the crypto industry including Bitcoin Magazine. He recently raised $300 million to launch Nakamoto, a publicly traded bitcoin investment company. Ties to Trump: Baily served as a crypto adviser to Trump's campaign. Vance also saluted Bailey at the Las Vegas conference, saying he was 'grateful for everything you've done for the bitcoin community.' ___ Associated Press writer Alan Suderman contributed to this report. ___ Follow the AP's coverage of the crypto industry at
