During a packed conference in Dubai, a co-founder of the Trump family's cryptocurrency enterprise announced a groundbreaking agreement on Thursday. He revealed that an Abu Dhabi-backed investment fund would engage in a $2 billion transaction utilizing the Trump-affiliated firm's digital stablecoin.
This deal represents a significant foreign government contribution to a private venture linked to the Trump family, poised to generate substantial revenue for them. It also underscores the complex ethical challenges arising from the overlap between President Trump's business interests and state actors within the cryptocurrency space.
Zach Witkoff, co-founder of World Liberty Financial, disclosed that the firm's stablecoin, known as USD1, will facilitate the transaction between MGX, an Emirati investment firm supported by the state, and Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange.
Every aspect of Witkoff's announcement, delivered alongside the president’s second eldest son during a conference panel, raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
MGX’s adoption of the World Liberty stablecoin formally links the Trump family’s crypto firm with a foreign government-backed entity. Additionally, the partnership ties World Liberty to Binance, a company under ongoing U.S. government scrutiny following admissions of federal money-laundering violations in 2023.
The high-profile announcement also functioned as a global promotional opportunity, highlighting the potential for crypto investors to collaborate with a firm closely connected to President Trump, who is publicly listed as World Liberty’s chief crypto advocate.
