Kenneth Glad
Newly released figures show a sharp shift in where major private earnings are coming from. The disclosure has renewed attention on the overlap between wealth, influence, and public responsibility.
The sitting president’s latest financial disclosure runs 927 pages and shows how cryptocurrency became a major source of income for the US president during his first year back in office.
According to the BBC, Trump reported more than $1 billion in crypto-related earnings, including $635.1 million linked to the $TRUMP meme coin and more than $500 million from World Liberty Financial, the cryptocurrency venture associated with his family.
The crypto figures exceeded Trump’s older income streams from real estate, clubs, golf resorts, licensing deals, and branded merchandise. They also marked a sharp turn for a president who once called Bitcoin a “scam,” before later promising to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet.”
Trump defended the gains by pointing to wider market growth.
“You know why I’m profiting, because the stock market’s going up, everybody’s profiting.”
He also said: “I don’t get involved in my personal [finances], we have funds that run my money.”
“I’ve made a lot of money before I became president, and they invest my money, and I don’t talk to them.”
The White House rejects conflict claims
The White House has denied that Trump’s official decisions are shaped by his finances. Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly told BBC: “Neither the President nor his family has ever engaged – or will ever engage – in conflicts of interest.”
She added: “All actions by President Trump and his administration are taken in the best interest of the American people – and any so-called ‘reporters’ pushing otherwise are recycling the same, tired, false narrative that Democrats and the legacy media have been pushing for a decade.”
Critics see the matter differently. Richard Painter, former chief White House ethics lawyer under George W. Bush, told BBC: “Of course it’s a conflict of interest.”
The dispute is sharpened by the unusual legal position of the presidency. The US conflict-of-interest law that applies to many executive branch employees does not apply to the president or vice president, according to the Office of Government Ethics and federal statute.
That exemption does not remove every limit. Presidents must file public financial disclosures, and constitutional emoluments rules can restrict certain benefits tied to governments. But the law does not require a president to sell a business before taking office.
Past presidents have often gone further than the legal minimum. Legal Clarity noted that Jimmy Carter placed his peanut business in a blind trust, while George H.W. Bush used a blind trust for investments. Trump kept ownership while management was handled by family members.
The coin remains controversial
The $TRUMP coin was launched shortly before Trump returned to office. According to BeInCrypto, it operates on the Solana blockchain and combines Trump’s public brand with meme-coin culture.
The token climbed sharply after launch before retreating from its peak. BeInCrypto also reported that 80% of the supply is controlled by Trump-affiliated entities, including CIC Digital LLC and Fight Fight Fight LLC, a concentration some market observers say increases investor risk.
That structure has made the coin both a market story and a governance story. Its value depends heavily on Trump’s public standing, while his administration has promoted a friendlier federal approach to digital assets.
Trump’s growing involvement in cryptocurrency has prompted criticism from ethics experts and political opponents.
Ruben Sindahl, a legal analyst quoted by TV 2, describes Trump’s second presidential term as “the biggest wave of corruption in human history.”
“Trump is a businessman before he is president,” he said.
The dispute now centers on whether a president should help shape crypto policy while continuing to report substantial income from ventures tied to the same industry. The White House maintains that Trump’s business affairs are managed separately and that no conflict exists.
Sources: BBC, TV 2, BeInCrypto, Legal Clarity, US Office of Government Ethics.
