“The federal government should work for the American public—not for President Trump’s bottom line.”

Full letter here

Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committees, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, sent a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Acting Chair, Mark Uyeda, demanding transparency regarding potential conflicts of interest and whether Trump’s financial ties have influenced SEC decision-making.

“We write to you in our capacities as Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services today to ask you and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to preserve all records and communications regarding World Liberty Financial, Inc., the cryptocurrency company owned by President Trump’s family,” wrote the lawmakers.

A Reuters investigation revealed that Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Eric Trump are directly affiliated with WLF, which has already raised over $500 million in token sales through an exempt securities offering. The Trump family has a claim on 75% of net revenues from those sales, meaning they stand to personally profit as much as $400 million from the venture. In the letter, the lawmakers call on the SEC to preserve and provide records related to WLF’s operations and any communications between the agency and Trump family members or their associates.

“We request information from you and the Commission to enable Congress to fulfill its Constitutional oversight responsibilities and help us better understand the extent to which the Trump family’s financial interest in World Liberty Financial may be influencing your and the Commission’s activities, and whether this conflict of interest may be interfering with its mission to protect investors and maintain fair and orderly markets,” the lawmakers added.

In the letter, Waters and Warren focus on the SEC’s abrupt decision to pause its enforcement case against controversial crypto figure Justin Sun, a major investor in WLF. Sun, who was sued by the SEC in 2023 for fraudulent market manipulation and other alleged misconduct, announced a $30 million investment in WLF last year—later increasing it to $75 million. Shortly thereafter, the SEC quietly halted its case against him, raising concerns about whether Trump’s financial interests influenced the agency’s decision-making.

“The Trump family’s financial stake in World Liberty Financial represents an unprecedented conflict of interest with the potential to influence the Trump Administration’s oversight—or lack thereof—of the cryptocurrency industry…” they emphasized. “Indeed, recent reports suggest that World Liberty Financial backers may have received preferential treatment at the SEC.”

Representative Waters and Senator Warren are demanding full transparency from the SEC as the House Financial Services Committee prepares to vote on stablecoin legislation, which could have major implications for companies like WLF. The Trump-backed firm has announced plans to launch a stablecoin, USD1, adding to concerns about potential regulatory favoritism. In addition to requesting all records related to World Liberty Financial, the lawmakers request the agency to answer questions to explain what safeguards, if any, exist to prevent the Trump family’s financial interests from influencing crypto policy decisions.

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