By Jessica Frank-Keyes
Former US President Donald Trump could be in the money to the tune of £2.4bn after investors approved his plan to launch online platform Truth Social on the stock market.
The $3bn plan was agreed upon today after a shareholder vote at Digital World Acquisition, the shell company with which Trump’s firm has sought to combine.
It means Trump Media & Technology, behind his social network Truth Social, has succeeded after spending years fighting to go public via a so-called “blank check” merger.
The firm will now be able to trade on the stock market as Trump Media & Technology Group – but it will run under the stock ticker ‘DJT’ which is the former Republican President’s initials.
It comes amid his ongoing reelection campaign, which will see the 77-year-old face a rematch for the White House with incumbent Democrat Joe Biden, 81, in November after rival Nikki Haley pulled out.
Current average polling suggests the two men are neck-and-neck, with the Economist putting Biden on 45 and Trump on 44, with just seven months to go to election day.
Trump has also been mired in legal woes, including a New York ordering him last month to pay $454m following a civil fraud case.
His lawyers have since warned the payment was a “practical impossibility” after 30 surety companies turned him down for bond.
Trump supporters previously bought shares in Digital World in a bid to boost the stock, which has improved by 45 per cent since the start of the year.
It is expected to debut at $5bn with a stock price of $44, with Trump holding 79m shares, a stake worth about $3bn, which he can’t sell for six months.
While Trump Media has reportedly seen sales worth about $5m since 2021.
