“Crypto is one of those things we have to do,” Trump said. “Whether we like it or not, I have to do it.”
Beside him were his collaborators, including a family friend, some of Trump’s sons and a pair of little-known crypto enthusiasts with no experience running a high-profile business. Together, they were rolling out World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture that has raised concerns about Trump’s conflicts of interest and alarmed some of his most vocal supporters in the industry.
Trump has promoted the project since August, but its exact purpose remains unclear. On the livestream, he did not address the business directly, deferring to his partners.
It’s unusual for a presidential candidate to embark on a new business just weeks before Election Day. But throughout his political career, Trump has engaged in business dealings that government ethics experts have flagged as problematic. He is the majority owner of Trump Media & Technology Group, the publicly traded parent company of his social media platform Truth Social, which accounts for some $2 billion of his personal wealth.
Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight, a nonpartisan watchdog group, said that if Trump is elected, his involvement in the crypto venture would create serious conflicts of interest. Trump “would be able to push regulatory agencies to favor businesses he is involved in,” Brian said. Ethics experts have said that his ownership of the social media company raises similar issues. Representatives for the Trump Organization and World Liberty Financial did not respond to requests for comment.
Alongside the Trumps, the group overseeing World Liberty Financial includes a family friend and an assortment of digital currency enthusiasts with no track record running high-profile crypto businesses.
Steve Witkoff, a real estate magnate and close friend of Trump, and his son Zach are both involved in World Liberty Financial, according to the white paper. The elder Witkoff was golfing with Trump on Sunday when the U.S. Secret Service stopped the apparent assassination attempt on the former president at his golf course in Palm Beach, Florida.