Money Grab/Charge for access to the president
Abu Dhabi’s MGX picks the family’s stablecoin to settle a $2B Binance deal
MGX, an Abu Dhabi fund chaired by the UAE’s national security adviser, settled a $2 billion investment in Binance using USD1, the stablecoin of the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial. The $2 billion is transaction volume, not family income; the venture earns the yield on it for as long as it stays.
What happened
In March 2025 MGX, an Abu Dhabi government-backed fund chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, announced a $2 billion minority investment in Binance. Sheikh Tahnoon is the UAE’s national security adviser. Binance is the world’s largest crypto exchange. The announcement did not say how the investment would be paid.
On May 1, 2025, at the Token2049 conference in Dubai, World Liberty Financial co-founder Zach Witkoff announced that MGX had chosen USD1, World Liberty’s stablecoin, to close the deal. Eric Trump appeared with him on stage. Bloomberg and Reuters reported it the same day. World Liberty is majority-owned by a Trump family entity.
Blockchain data from Arkham showed an anonymous wallet received $2 billion of USD1 between April 16 and 29, 2025. USD1’s supply rose from under $130 million to about $2.1 billion in that window. A stablecoin issuer earns the yield on the reserves behind its coins, so $2 billion parked in USD1 produces reserve income for the venture for as long as it sits there.
Who benefited
World Liberty Financial earns the yield on the reserves behind $2 billion of its stablecoin for as long as the money stays in USD1. Trump’s 2025 disclosure reports $8,326,828 in “Stablecoin Business” income for the year. The Trump family owns the majority of the venture. Binance received the investment and the endorsement of a Trump-linked product.
Who wanted something
Abu Dhabi, through a state fund chaired by its national security adviser, was pursuing U.S. approval for advanced AI chips in the same months. It was also seeking broad investment ties with the administration. Binance’s founder Changpeng Zhao had pleaded guilty in 2023 to a U.S. money-laundering-control charge and was seeking a pardon.
Who lost out
The Constitution bars a president from accepting payments from foreign states without the consent of Congress. A sovereign-backed fund chose to route $2 billion through a product that pays the president’s family, and Congress was not asked. The $2 billion itself is transaction volume, not family income, so this record is logged but not counted.
Why it matters
A fund controlled by a foreign government picked the president’s family’s stablecoin to settle a $2 billion deal. The family venture earns income on that money for as long as it stays in USD1. The decision was announced by the family’s business partner on a stage in Dubai, with the president’s son beside him.
Sources Bloomberg via MarketScreenerBloombergReuters via Fox BusinessThe BlockU.S. Office of Government Ethics (primary)