Former President Donald Trump is on the verge of a multi-billion dollar windfall at a time when he’s facing immense financial and legal pressure.
Trump Media & Technology Group, the owner of Trump’s struggling social media platform Truth Social, is on the cusp of going public as soon as next week following years of legal and regulatory obstacles.
If shareholders vote on Friday to approve Trump Media’s merger with a blank-check company, Trump will own a dominant stake in a public company, with shares worth more than $3 billion at current market prices.
However, experts tell CNN there are numerous practical, financial and legal reasons why this deal – even if it gets approved – is unlikely to solve Trump’s imminent cash crunch.
“President Trump won’t be able to monetize that stake right away,” said Matthew Kennedy, senior initial public offering market strategist at Renaissance Capital.
Trump faces a Monday deadline to post a $464 million bond in New York’s civil fraud case against him or New York’s attorney general could try to seize his golf course and private estate north of Manhattan – or other assets.
The good news for Trump is that there are strong incentives for shareholders to approve the merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp.
If it gets the green light from shareholders, Trump stands to be the dominant shareholder, with a stake of at least 58.1%, according to filings.
The merger agreement calls for Trump to own roughly 79 million shares of the new public company – and potentially tens of millions more if certain goals are hit.
