Key Takeaways
- • Shareholder and former Circle employee J. Benjamin Greenberg filed a lawsuit on Thursday against President Donald Trump, World Liberty Financial, and U.S. Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, alleging unconstitutional profits from crypto dealings.
- • The complaint alleges the president has "corruptly" profited from $2 billion through deals tied to the UAE, including an Abu Dhabi government-created investment fund's purchase of USD1 stablecoin products from World Liberty Financial.
- • The lawsuit alleges a member of the UAE ruling family agreed to pay half a billion dollars into World Liberty Financial, and that the president provided the Emirati leadership access to advanced AI chips and pardoned a convicted felon in exchange.
- • The filing references a February Wall Street Journal report on the arrangement; Trump and the White House have consistently denied any conflicts of interest.
- • The suit lands as lawmakers blocked the Clarity Act, landmark digital asset legislation Trump backed, citing alleged illicit crypto profits by the Trump family.
Summary
A shareholder of Circle, the fintech company behind the USDC stablecoin, has sued U.S. President Donald Trump over alleged crypto-related corruption. The lawsuit, filed Thursday by J. Benjamin Greenberg, a shareholder and former Circle employee, names Trump, World Liberty Financial, and U.S. Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff as defendants.
The complaint alleges that a member of the United Arab Emirates ruling family agreed to pay half a billion dollars into World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance project co-founded by the president and his sons. It further alleges that an investment fund created by the government of Abu Dhabi provided the president with $2 billion via World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin product. The lawsuit states that the president allegedly gave Emirati leadership access to advanced artificial intelligence chips and pardoned a convicted felon in return for the crypto investment. It cites a February Wall Street Journal article that reported the deal.
The filing argues that the arrangements constitute public corruption, quoting the complaint's assertion that "a public official [is] taking money from a foreign power." According to the lawsuit, the president has "corruptly" profited from the deals. Bitcoin Magazine notes that the president stopped being involved in World Liberty Financial after taking office in 2025.
The lawsuit comes as U.S. regulators continue advancing pro-crypto rules, even after lawmakers last month blocked the Clarity Act, the draft digital asset legislation Trump backed. Several lawmakers opposed the bill, saying the Trump family had illicitly profited from crypto ventures. Trump and the White House have always denied conflicts of interest. In August, ahead of the Clarity Act vote, the president said Democrats criticizing his family's crypto ventures had profited from stock trading.
The complaint alleges that a member of the United Arab Emirates ruling family agreed to pay half a billion dollars into World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance project co-founded by the president and his sons. It further alleges that an investment fund created by the government of Abu Dhabi provided the president with $2 billion via World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin product. The lawsuit states that the president allegedly gave Emirati leadership access to advanced artificial intelligence chips and pardoned a convicted felon in return for the crypto investment. It cites a February Wall Street Journal article that reported the deal.
The filing argues that the arrangements constitute public corruption, quoting the complaint's assertion that "a public official [is] taking money from a foreign power." According to the lawsuit, the president has "corruptly" profited from the deals. Bitcoin Magazine notes that the president stopped being involved in World Liberty Financial after taking office in 2025.
The lawsuit comes as U.S. regulators continue advancing pro-crypto rules, even after lawmakers last month blocked the Clarity Act, the draft digital asset legislation Trump backed. Several lawmakers opposed the bill, saying the Trump family had illicitly profited from crypto ventures. Trump and the White House have always denied conflicts of interest. In August, ahead of the Clarity Act vote, the president said Democrats criticizing his family's crypto ventures had profited from stock trading.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.