TLDR
- Democrats have requested suspicious activity reports from the Treasury related to Trump-backed crypto projects including World Liberty Financial and TRUMP token
- Democratic lawmakers are concerned these crypto ventures could be vehicles for foreign influence peddling
- Senators Warren and Van Hollen specifically urged Trump to divest from his stablecoin before his Middle East trip
- Democrats raised concerns about Trump family members potentially profiting from $2 billion worth of stablecoins in a transaction involving an Abu Dhabi investment fund
- Top TRUMP token investors were reportedly invited to a private dinner with Trump, raising additional ethics concerns
Democratic lawmakers are stepping up their scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s cryptocurrency ventures, requesting suspicious activity reports and urging divestment amid concerns about potential foreign influence and ethics violations.
A group of Democratic representatives sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on May 14 seeking suspicious activity reports on several Trump-backed crypto projects.
The request covers reports filed since 2023 related to World Liberty Financial (WLF) and the Official Trump token (TRUMP).
The letter, authored by Representatives Gerald Connolly, Joseph Morelle, and Jamie Raskin, asks for any reports mentioning a wide range of entities and individuals. These include WinRed, America PAC, Elon Musk, World Liberty Financial, WLF, TRUMP, MELANIA, and crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun.
Concerns Over Foreign Influence
The lawmakers expressed worry that World Liberty Financial could serve as a “vehicle for foreign influence peddling” because part of its token sale was directed at foreign investors. They noted these investors are “generally subject to less stringent regulation than US investors.”
The Democratic representatives also flagged concerns about Justin Sun’s investment in WLF. They pointed to the pause in the SEC’s lawsuit against Sun, which had alleged he broke securities laws, as a troubling development.
The TRUMP token has also drawn scrutiny because purchasers’ identities are not publicly disclosed. This lack of transparency could potentially allow bad actors to “curry favor with Trump” by buying the token, according to the lawmakers.
The probe seeks to “determine whether legislation is necessary to prevent violations of campaign finance, consumer protection, bribery, securities fraud, and other anti-corruption laws.”
Calls for Divestment Before Middle East Trip
In a separate but related development, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Chris Van Hollen urged President Trump to divest from his stablecoin holdings before his Middle East trip this week. The senators expressed concern about the potential for foreign governments to use the stablecoin to influence Trump’s decision-making.
Their concerns stem partly from a New York Times report that Trump family members could profit from $2 billion worth of their stablecoins used in a foreign transaction involving an Abu Dhabi investment fund.
“You can eliminate at least one venue for corruption… by divesting all of your interests and your family’s interests” in the stablecoin, the lawmakers wrote to Trump.
Adding to ethics concerns, the official website for Trump’s meme coin reportedly invited its top 220 investors to an “intimate private dinner” with the president. References to the White House were later removed from the website.
These Democrat-led efforts come as Trump eyes $1 trillion worth of deals and investments during his Middle East trip. The timing has raised questions about potential conflicts of interest between the president’s crypto ventures and his official duties.
The Treasury Department has been asked to provide the requested suspicious activity reports no later than May 30. Democrats have made it clear they view the potential for corruption in Trump’s crypto deals as high, using some of these concerns to derail a bipartisan crypto regulation bill last week.
This latest probe follows other recent Democrat-led actions targeting Trump’s crypto ventures. These include a letter to the Justice Department and Treasury expressing concerns about Trump’s ties to crypto exchange Binance, as well as two bills and a subcommittee inquiry focused on Trump’s ability to profit from his crypto initiatives.
