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- UAE-backed Aryam bought 49% of World Liberty Financial for $500M, with major sums to Trump entities.
- G42-linked executives gained board seats as Tahnoon’s influence grew after Trump’s election.
- Senators seek a probe into WLFI token sales tied to wallets linked to sanctioned foreign actors.
A UAE-backed investment vehicle quietly reached a deal to purchase nearly half of World Liberty Financial, a crypto startup tied to Donald Trump, just days before his return to the White House. The Wall Street Journal reported the undisclosed transaction after reviewing related documents and speaking with people familiar with the matter.
Aryam Investment 1, an Abu Dhabi entity backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, agreed in January 2025 to acquire a 49% stake for $500 million. The Journal said half of the payment was delivered upfront. It added that $187 million went to Trump family-controlled entities.
Additional tens of millions reportedly flowed to entities tied to co-founders. Those included relatives of U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. According to the cited documents in the report, Eric Trump signed the agreement.
UAE Firm Emerges as Major World Liberty Financial Shareholder
The agreement was not made public until World Liberty Financial later admitted to an “acute reduction” in the Trump family’s share. According to the Journal, “Aryam Investment 1 became a major outside shareholder after the deal.” In addition, it was stated that individuals associated with G42 helped manage the Abu Dhabi company.
Tahnoon has played an important part in the UAE’s long-term ambitions in artificial intelligence. However, under the Biden administration, there were significant limitations to Tahnoon’s efforts to procure advanced chips made in the United States. There was apprehension that companies like G42 could potentially bring these chips to China.
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Trump’s election gave these efforts fresh momentum. Tahnoon had multiple meetings with Trump and other officials. In just a few months, the administration was committed to providing the UAE with significant annual appropriations of advanced chips.
G42 Executives Gain Influence at WLFI
Executives linked to G42 helped oversee Aryam Investment 1 and received board seats at World Liberty Financial. The Journal said this made Aryam the largest outside holder of the startup.
It added that another Tahnoon-led firm, MGX, used World Liberty’s stablecoin to complete a $2 billion investment in Binance shortly before the chip framework was announced.
However, World Liberty and the White House denied any policy influence. Spokespeople told the Journal that Trump was not involved in the deal.
Last year, Democratic senators urged the Justice Department and Treasury to review alleged links between token purchases at World Liberty Financial and sanctioned foreign actors.
A November letter cited claims that wallets tied to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, as well as Russian and Iranian entities, bought WLFI governance tokens.
The senators said the ownership structure allowed Trump-linked entities to collect most token revenue. They argued that the arrangement created a direct conflict, as token-sale proceeds flowed to the president’s family.
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