3 weeks ago
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President-elect Donald Trump is doubling down on his plans to hold onto his roughly $3.5 billion stake in the parent company of Truth Social, just days after winning back the White House.
In a social media post, Trump, who is the company's majority shareholder, said Friday he has "NO INTENTION OF SELLING" his nearly 115 million shares. He added that there have been "fake, untrue, and probably illegal rumors and/or statements made by, perhaps, market manipulators or short sellers, that I am interested in selling shares of Truth," which he rejected.
"THOSE RUMORS OR STATEMENTS ARE FALSE," Trump said on Truth Social. "I hereby request that the people who have set off these fake rumors or statements, and who may have done so in the past, be immediately investigated by the appropriate authorities."
Now a major source of his estimated $5.6 billion fortune, Trump's stock in the company — Trump Media & Technology Group — poses a new and potentially complicated element of the president-elect's business empire as he prepares to head back to Washington.
The stock has drawn concern from ethics watchdogs, who worry that corporate interests or foreign actors could try to use Truth Social to curry favor with Trump by either buying ads on the platform or investing in the stock.
Trump Media has struggled to generate much business, despite its hefty valuation of $6.5 billion. On Tuesday night, before polls closed across the country, the company reported a $19.2 million net loss for the three months ended Sept. 30. Trump Media generates its revenue from advertising on Truth Social.
Spokespeople for the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about how Trump plans to handle the stock once in office.
