Warren Presses SEC on Preventing Undue Political Influence with Trump Media’s Plan to Launch Investment Products
Senator Urges Safeguards to Protect Investors and Preserve Market Integrity Amid Unprecedented Presidential Conflict of Interest
Trump Media announcement comes in wake of President Trump stripping financial regulators of independence and Trump family’s World Liberty Financial decision to launch a stablecoin as Congress considers stablecoin legislation
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, sent a letter to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins questioning how the agency plans to protect investors and ensure its independence as it considers whether to approve new financial products being launched by Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG)—a company majority-owned by President Donald Trump.
“All SEC decisions and actions involving TMTG and President Trump’s financial interests should be carefully managed to ensure that they are free from undue political interference and influence from the President and his administration,” wrote Ranking Member Warren.
According to reports, TMTG has signed a “binding agreement” with Crypto.com and a newly-formed firm, Yorkville Digital America, to offer Truth Social-branded exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other products through its new financial services platform, Truth.Fi. The company has announced plans to launch these products by the end of the year—likely requiring SEC approval. In the letter, Ranking Member Warren outlines a series of serious ethical, legal, and financial risks posed by the deal, noting that President Trump’s direct financial interest in TMTG—combined with his authority over federal regulators—creates an extraordinary conflict of interest.
“The situation, in which ‘a sitting President has asked a federal agency within his administration to approve investment products by a company he controls,’ is ‘without precedent’ in the Commission’s history,” wrote Ranking Member Warren. “Furthermore, the President has attempted to assert his dominance over decision-making at independent agencies like the SEC through executive orders and firings, putting further pressure on the Commission to fall in line.”
In the letter, Ranking Member Warren also points to Trump’s history of failed business ventures, including prior SEC sanctions, as a warning sign for potential investor harm. She warned that this history, combined with the President’s ability to influence markets and regulators, poses clear risks to retail investors and public confidence in the integrity of U.S. markets.
Ranking Member Warren also noted that TMTG’s announcement also comes in the wake of a decision by World Liberty Financial—a cryptocurrency company associated with President Trump and his sons—to launch a stablecoin. Congress is currently considering legislation that would provide the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency with responsibilities to oversee the stablecoin market. President Trump has asserted authority over the regulatory and supervisory functions at both agencies, so—if this legislation were to pass—he would have the opportunity to control the activities of even more entities responsible for regulating his businesses and ensuring they follow the law.
Ranking Member Warren requested detailed information from the agency, including all communications with the White House about TMTG, a list of risk assessments regarding Trump’s financial stake, and an explanation of how the SEC will guard against insider trading and political influence.
###
Next Article Previous Article