Eric Trump signed $500 million deal giving UAE-linked investors a 49% stake in Trump family crypto venture World Liberty Financial

Eric Trump signed an agreement on January 16, 2025 -- four days before Donald Trump's second inauguration -- giving an investment firm controlled by lieutenants of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the United Arab Emirates' national security adviser and manager of its largest sovereign wealth fund, a 49 percent stake in World Liberty Financial (WLFI), the cryptocurrency venture co-founded by members of the Trump and Witkoff families. The Wall Street Journal reported the previously undisclosed $500 million deal on February 1, 2026, citing sources and company documents; of the payment, $187 million went to Trump family entities and at least $31 million to entities tied to Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy for peace missions. Two senior officers at Tahnoon-backed companies joined World Liberty's board as part of the agreement.

The deal extends a pattern the archive has tracked since WLFI's 2025 launch: foreign or legally exposed counterparties acquiring large stakes in the venture, with proceeds flowing back to the Trump family. Sheikh Tahnoon separately controls G42 and MGX, Emirati firms that received eased US export controls on advanced AI chips from the Commerce Department in July 2026, a decision Sen. Elizabeth Warren called a corrupt deal. A WLFI spokesperson told CNN that any claim the chip decision was connected to this investment was "100% false," and reporting on both transactions found no evidence chip exports were offered in exchange for the crypto stake.

The White House said Trump's assets are held in a trust managed by his children and that there are no conflicts of interest; Trump and Witkoff are now listed as WLFI "emeritus" co-founders. World Liberty Financial confirmed the transaction to CNN and separately to The New York Times, saying the deal was driven purely by business considerations. Witkoff's attorney said he has since divested from WLFI, "notwithstanding his ability and willingness to recuse."

Updates

2026-02-04 — Rep. Khanna requested WLFI records over UAE deal [3]

Rep. Ro Khanna, ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, sent a letter to World Liberty Financial requesting ownership records, payment details, capitalization tables, board-appointment records, and internal communications related to the UAE-linked $500 million investment, citing concerns about conflicts of interest and possible influence on U.S.-China export-control policy.

2026-02-13 — Sens. Warren and Kim demanded a CFIUS review of the UAE stake [4]

Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Andy Kim sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asking him to determine whether the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States should examine the transaction, and whether CFIUS had already reviewed it or made recommendations to President Trump.

2026-02-19 — Rep. Meeks led 40 House Democrats in demanding a Treasury investigation [5]

Rep. Gregory Meeks and 40 other House Democrats sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Bessent requesting an investigation into safeguards against foreign government influence at World Liberty Financial and Treasury's role in related bank-chartering and OCC decisions.

2026-06-23 — Five Senate Democrats demanded hearings on WLFI's foreign crypto deals [6]

Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal, Gary Peters, Dick Durbin, and Ron Wyden called for immediate hearings on the Trump family's cryptocurrency firm and its foreign ties, citing the UAE-linked $500 million World Liberty Financial stake alongside the administration's subsequent approval of advanced AI chip exports to the UAE and a $1.4 billion arms sale, and demanded administration officials testify under oath about what they knew about payments to the Trump and Witkoff families.