Summary
Trump Media's Bitcoin strategy — buying 11,542 BTC at $118,522 average, selling 7,281 BTC at $74,855 average, and pledging the remaining 4,261 BTC against convertible notes — has produced an estimated $555M total loss. Simultaneously, the company launched Truth API, a paid feed giving institutional customers faster access to President Trump's Truth Social posts at up to $100K/month. Senators Warren and Schiff have asked the SEC to investigate whether the product violates securities law.
Key Points
- Treasury mismanagement: Bought near the top ($118,522 avg), sold near the bottom ($74,855 avg). $555M total loss (realized + paper). Remaining 4,261 BTC locked against convertible notes until May 2028.
- Scale relative to business: Q1 revenue was $871,200. The Bitcoin loss is 637x annual revenue. A $243.96M mark-to-market hit on digital assets drove a $405.9M quarterly net loss.
- Truth API: Institutional feed delivering posts from top 10 Truth Social accounts in milliseconds. Pricing: $100K/month or $60K/month under 3-year commitment. Launched August 1.
- Securities law question: If a president's social media posts move markets (e.g., Trump's July statement on Iran MOU collapse sent Bitcoin sharply lower), and a company he controls sells faster access to those posts, does this constitute insider trading or an unregistered securities offering?
- Warren-Schiff letter: Sent to SEC Chair Paul Atkins on July 28 requesting immediate probe. Cites Trump's ~41% stake in Trump Media and his June 10 post praising Citigroup by ticker at market open.
- Political context: SEC is led by a Trump appointee. The CLARITY Act (digital asset market clarity) is under Senate consideration. Ethics provisions around officials issuing digital assets are being debated.