How the Trump Family Built a Global Crypto Cash Machine

A sweeping investigation has pulled back the curtain on the Trump family’s new revenue engine. Reuters says the Trump family made over $800 million from crypto in the first half of 2025, much of it from overseas buyers, sharpening long‑running questions about the overlap of public power and private profit.

What Reuters Found

On October 28, 2025, Reuters reported that the Trump Organization’s income jumped to about $864 million in the first six months of the year—and that more than 90% came from digital‑asset ventures tied to the family. Those include governance tokens sold by World Liberty Financial (WLFI) and a Trump‑branded meme coin. More than half of the haul—roughly $463 million—came from WLFI token sales, while an estimated $336 million stemmed from the meme coin. Reuters’ analysis, reviewed by outside experts, also traced major purchases to foreign investors and found that WLFI directs 75% of token‑sale revenue to a Trump entity. The project’s new stablecoin has been used to settle a headline deal as well: A $2 billion Binance deal used the USD1 stablecoin, according to WLFI’s co‑founder and subsequent reporting. The company says the tokens have real utility and disputes parts of the analysis.

How The Machine Works

World Liberty pitches WLFI as a governance token for a still‑developing crypto finance platform. For now, the value proposition leans heavily on the Trump name and access to a burgeoning ecosystem that includes a stablecoin and partnerships. Early trading underscored the risk: after an initial pop, WLFI slumped sharply in the days that followed. The family’s representatives maintain the tokens are not securities and argue the platform’s benefits will accrue to holders over time. Ethics experts quoted by Reuters called the arrangement “legal but unethical,” noting that absent explicit promises of access or favors, current rules leave wide gray zones.

Ethics Questions And Next Steps

Scrutiny is mounting. House Democrats opened a probe into a meme‑coin dinner on May 29, 2025, seeking details on top buyers and whether foreign money effectively purchased proximity to the president. Separately, senators urged ethics officials to review a $2 billion Abu Dhabi investment settled in USD1, warning it could raise constitutional concerns if it amounts to a foreign benefit. The White House says the president’s assets are in a trust managed by his children and denies any conflict. What comes next will likely hinge on whether regulators and lawmakers tighten rules around officeholders’ digital‑asset ventures—and whether World Liberty can deliver the technology it has promised, beyond the brand power that has fueled its sales so far.

Sources

• Inside the Trump family’s global crypto cash machine — Reuters (October 28, 2025)
• House Democrat launches investigation of Trump’s meme coin dinner — Washington Post (May 29, 2025)
• Trump-Tied Stablecoin Used for MGX’s $2 Billion Binance Deal — Bloomberg (May 1, 2025)