Circle Shareholder Sues Trump Over $2B Crypto Deal

J. Benjamin Greenberg, a Circle shareholder holding 10,000 ordinary shares, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Thursday. The legal action names President Donald Trump, World Liberty Financial, affiliate entities, and U.S. Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff as defendants. The suit seeks a court declaration that the President violated the U.S. Constitution's Foreign Emoluments Clause.

The lawsuit alleges that an Abu Dhabi investment fund named MGX invested $2 billion into cryptocurrency exchange Binance using the USD1 stablecoin in 2025. The filing claims that this investment was routed through World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance project co-founded by President Trump and his sons. The plaintiff asserts that the President and his family built a cryptocurrency business that invited foreign states to route money to him by paying into it. The suit further alleges that the President granted Emirati leadership access to advanced artificial intelligence chips and pardoned a convicted felon in exchange for these crypto investments.

Background reporting indicates that World Liberty Financial ceased its association with the President after he took office in 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported in February that an investment vehicle backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed to purchase a 49% stake in World Liberty for $500 million. Public Citizen reporting states that the crypto ventures cost investors about $4.7 billion, while the President reported netting $1.4 billion in 2025 from several crypto ventures.

A Circle spokesperson stated that the company did not initiate, direct, authorize, or participate in the filing of the lawsuit. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly stated that Trump had no conflicts of interest with his crypto investments and called the lawsuit frivolous.