USA: Donald Trump goes public with media companies

The former US President Donald Trump want with that
initial public offering of his media company TMTG to solve its own liquidity problems. Shareholders have approved the necessary merger with Trump’s partner company Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC). Trump is himself the main shareholder of TMTG and, according to estimates, could earn more than three billion dollars with the move.

Trump was convicted of business fraud. A court-required security deposit of almost half a billion dollars is due on Monday. According to his lawyers, he will not be able to raise the money

The 77-year-old Trump used the company Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) to set up his own online network
Truth Social founded. In order to go public, TMTG is to merge with DWAC. The partner company serves as a kind of vehicle: it is a so-called Special Purpose Acquisition Company (Spac), in a sense an empty shell that is already traded on the stock exchange.

Trump fined

By merging with such a company, Trump’s TMTG can go public on Wall Street, bypassing numerous requirements. The use of such stock exchange vehicles is quite common in the USA. However, in such deals, major shareholders like Trump must hold onto their equity for six months before they can sell it.

Were in a civil case in New York Trump and his sons Donald Junior and Eric were found guilty of artificially inflating the assets of their real estate empire over the years. Trump was therefore fined approximately $355 million plus interest, and his sons were each fined $4 million plus interest.

In total, these penalties amount to approximately $464 million (€427 million). Trump has appealed the ruling. The deadline by which Trump must deposit the money with the judiciary or provide appropriate guarantees expires on Monday.

The US Magazine Forbes estimates Trump’s fortune at $2.6 billion. But most of it is tied up in real estate and is therefore not immediately available to him. The right-wing populist Trump wants to become US president again and is expected to run against the 81-year-old Democratic incumbent Joe Biden in the November election.