Why Trump might have trouble cashing in on Truth Social billions
Support truly
independent journalism
Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.
Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.
Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.
Donald Trump could have trouble cashing in on his $2.3 billion stake in Truth Social when it frees up next month, a new report reveals.
The former president has been barred from selling or borrowing against his stake in the recently-formed Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns his social media platform Truth Social, until September 25.
However, he might not have access to that large vat of cash even after the deadline expires, CNN reports.
Liquidating his stock would cause the price to tank, Michael Ohlrogge, an associate professor of law at the New York University School of Law, told the outlet.
“If Trump were to sell a large number of shares and the stock price tanks, to some degree he would be burning his own supporters who bought the stock,” Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida, told CNN. “Politically, that may not play out real well for him.”
Meanwhile, the share price is already tanking. Truth Social, which was launched in February 2022, has lost 70 percent of its value since March, CNN reports.
Trump Media and Technology Group also fell 4% as recently as Wednesday, with shares worth less than $20 for the first time since the company formed in the spring following a merger, CNN reports.
The platform saw some of its worst-ever audience numbers in June. Then, the site had just over 2.11 million unique visitors, which was down 38 percent compared to the same period last year.
It is the second lowest site traffic has dipped since June 2022, when Truth Social attracted 1.8 million visitors. For comparison, the site had more than 3.2 million visitors when it launched.
“The diminishing audience levels for Truth Social suggest a rejection of the harsh rhetoric expressed by the ex-president and his political allies that is one of the hallmarks of the two-year-old platform,” Howard Polskin, an analyst with the media monitoring firm TheRighting, told The Guardian last month.
In April, Donald Trump’s personal financial disclosure reports with the Federal Election Commission revealed that he made less than $201 from Truth Social.
Trump could want to cash in on Truth Social as the 2024 presidential race grows ever narrower. Vice President Kamala Harris is 3.5 points ahead of Trump as of August 29, according to an average of national polls.
Harris has also surged ahead of Trump following last week’s Democratic National Convention, a USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll released August 29 shows. She is leading Trump 48 percent to 43 percent, which is an eight-point turnaround from June when the former president was ahead of Biden by four points.
