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In one of the more surreal twists in the ongoing crypto-political soap opera, a $2 billion investment deal in Binance just got an extra dose of intrigue. An Abu Dhabi investment firm is buying a minority stake in the world’s biggest crypto exchange, and the deal is being done in a stablecoin backed by none other than the Trump family. Yes, really. This marks the first time a Trump-linked stablecoin has been used in a high-profile crypto exchange deal.
The token, USD1, is issued by World Liberty Financial, a relatively new player on the stablecoin scene that comes with a lineup of Trump-branded roles, from “DeFi visionary” Barron Trump to “Web3 ambassadors” Eric and Don Jr. The deal was revealed at TOKEN2049 Dubai and is already raising a ton of eyebrows.
The Players and the Deal
The firm behind the investment is MGX, chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who also happens to be the UAE’s national security adviser. MGX isn’t new to throwing money at bold tech ventures. They’ve previously linked up with BlackRock and Microsoft on a $30 billion AI fund. This time, they’re going big on crypto.
Trump's World Liberty Financial says Abu Dhabi's MGX fund is making a $2B investment in Binance using World Liberty's USD1 stablecoin, raising ethical concerns (@yaffebellany / New York Times)https://t.co/RSm948t9Bphttps://t.co/lMaZcxKDWThttps://t.co/ZOzeer2dpR
— Techmeme (@Techmeme) May 2, 2025
The twist? Instead of wiring over U.S. dollars or using a major stablecoin like USDC, MGX is using USD1, a relatively obscure stablecoin until now, launched last year by World Liberty Financial. That company was co-founded by Zach Witkoff, son of real estate developer and Trump ally Steve Witkoff. And the Trump family’s involvement is anything but subtle.
According to company materials, President Donald Trump is listed as “chief crypto advocate.” Eric and Don Jr. are “Web3 ambassadors,” and Barron is, no joke, the “DeFi visionary.” It sounds like parody, but it’s real. USD1 is pegged to the dollar and supposedly backed by U.S. Treasuries, like other stablecoins that aim to keep a 1:1 value with the greenback.
.@worldlibertyfi pic.twitter.com/mwhVIzPJyq
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2024
Why This Is Raising Eyebrows
Let’s be clear, $2 billion isn’t pocket change. Using a politically-linked stablecoin to move that kind of money into a crypto exchange that recently got slammed with criminal charges in the U.S. raises all sorts of red flags.
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Binance, of course, pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering laws. It agreed to billions in penalties and has been under strict federal monitoring ever since. So the idea that a Trump-connected asset is now part of Binance’s rebound story? That’s bound to attract attention and likely investigation.
Critics are also pointing out the obvious conflict of interest concerns. If the Trump family profits from this stablecoin and a deal involving Binance, how does that affect the perception of impartiality, especially with Trump running for office again?
Add in that some buyers of USD1 tokens reportedly include foreign nationals who wouldn’t be allowed to donate to U.S. political campaigns, and the ethical maze gets even more complicated.
Conclusion
A $2 billion crypto investment was always going to make headlines. But doing it through a stablecoin branded with the Trump name pushes this story into totally uncharted territory. It’s a reminder that in crypto, politics, and finance, the lines are getting blurrier by the day. Whether this move holds up to legal scrutiny is another question entirely, one that regulators may soon be forced to answer.
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