U.S. President Donald Trump pushed back on claims that he is profiting from his newly launched memecoin in a new interview with NBC News on Sunday.
Donald Trump Dismisses Memecoin Controversy
Speaking on “Meet The Press” on May 4, Trump refuted allegations that he has been turning a profit from his namesake memecoin, $TRUMP, which he launched just days before his inauguration in January.
“I’m not profiting from anything,” Trump said when asked about the novel cryptocurrency.
“If I own stock in something and I do a good job, and the stock market goes up, I guess I’m profiting,” he added.
Top $TRUMP Investors Invited To Exclusive Gala Amid Ethics Questions
Trump’s conflicting response comes amid sustained scrutiny of him and his family’s ties to the crypto sector.
The sitting U.S. president is slated to host a dinner gala for the top 220 $TRUMP investors at Trump National Golf Club in Washington, D.C., later this month, prompting concerns that foreign influences may be able to buy his favor.
The move has sparked backlash from U.S. lawmakers over potential ethics issues, with Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) calling on Jamieson Greer, the acting director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, to launch an “urgent inquiry.”
“The American people deserve the unwavering assurance that access to the presidency is not being offered for sale to the highest bidder in exchange for the President’s own financial gain,” the U.S. lawmakers said in an April 25 letter.
World Liberty Financial To Launch USD1
In addition to $TRUMP, Trump is affiliated with the newly launched crypto platform, World Liberty Financial, which has plans to launch its dollar-pegged stablecoin, USD1 in the near future.
Just last week, the crypto company announced that USD1 will be used to settle a deal between Abu Dhabi-based investment firm MGX and crypto exchange Binance.
However, whether Trump’s connection to crypto is ethical remains in the hands of Greer.
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