President Donald Trump defended retaining an ownership stake in World Liberty Financial while his sons run the cryptocurrency business, as a reported $500 million investment linked to the United Arab Emirates draws renewed congressional scrutiny.
In a "60 Minutes" interview broadcast Nov. 8, Trump confirmed that he co-owns the company but denied knowing its operations. His comments left unresolved questions about whether foreign investors could view a financial relationship with the president's business as a route to influence.
"That's correct, yeah," Trump told interviewer Ross Douthat when asked about his co-ownership. Challenged over the arrangement, he replied: "Because I know nothing about it."
Trump said he could not reasonably ask his sons to stop conducting business during his presidency. He announced no plans to divest and argued that presidents inevitably face conflicts involving associates.
The investment at issue was negotiated shortly before Trump returned to office. According to The Wall Street Journal, Abu Dhabi investment vehicle Aryam Investment 1 agreed to pay $500 million for 49% of World Liberty, signing an agreement with Eric Trump on Jan. 16, 2025.
The vehicle was backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE's national security adviser. Of the initial $250 million payment, $187 million was allocated to Trump family entities and at least $31 million to entities affiliated with the family of World Liberty co-founder Steve Witkoff, the Journal reported.
A separate UAE-linked transaction involved MGX's $2 billion investment in cryptocurrency exchange Binance. World Liberty's USD1 stablecoin was selected to settle that investment, an arrangement announced in May 2025. That transaction was not an equity purchase in World Liberty.
The financial ties have attracted attention alongside the UAE's efforts to obtain advanced American artificial-intelligence chips. Reuters reported in May 2025 that negotiators had reached a preliminary agreement covering annual exports of up to 500,000 Nvidia chips, including 100,000 for Abu Dhabi-based G42.
A subsequent Commerce Department authorization allowed G42 to purchase the equivalent of up to 35,000 Nvidia Blackwell chips. Democratic Senate Banking Committee staff alleged in a June 2026 report that UAE investments were followed by favorable U.S. policy decisions.
The White House and World Liberty denied that the investment influenced chip policy. The report did not establish an exchange of business payments for government action.
Congressional demands for records are intensifying. Sen. Richard Blumenthal renewed a request to World Liberty on Nov. 5, saying its earlier responses were inadequate. His subcommittee requested initial documents by Nov. 30 and set Jan. 4, 2027, as the deadline for voluntary production.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, expected to chair the Senate Banking Committee in January, has called the UAE stake "corruption, plain and simple." Reuters reported that scrutiny could extend to preliminary conditional approval of a World Liberty-linked national trust bank. The institution has not received final authorization to operate.
Trump's financial disclosure covering 2025 reported more than $1.4 billion in crypto-related proceeds and royalties, according to The Washington Post's breakdown. Those amounts included token sales, an equity sale, a stablecoin transaction and licensing royalties; they do not represent net profit.
World Liberty's ownership disclosures identify Trump-affiliated DT Marks DEFI LLC as holding approximately 38% of WLF Holdco LLC, the entity that owns World Liberty Financial LLC.
