Donald Trump Receives Earnout Bonus From DJT Stock Making Him $1.8 Billion Richer

On Tuesday, presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump became $1.8 billion richer. The real estate mogul's newfound wealth came about after his recently publicly traded media company, Trump Media & Technology Group, gave him an earnout bonus of 36 million shares of the company's stock, DJT. The stock, which initially opened at around $70 before soaring to $80, has experienced some fluctuations in recent weeks but has consistently remained above the $17.50 benchmark for the 30-day requirement needed for Trump to receive the bonus. 

Trump's stock holdings of DJT, currently priced at around $45 a share, have grown to 114.75 million shares, making his entire stake worth over $5.1 billion. "Assuming the full issuance of the Earnout Shares, President Donald J. Trump will receive 36,000,000 Earnout Shares," the company explained in a securities filing. The Trump Media and Technology group merged with Digital World Acquisition Corp. last month after being approved by shareholders.

Truth Social, a platform that emerged in early 2022 in response to the decision by major social media companies to ban Trump at the end of his presidency, has reported about $3.5 million in revenue over the first three quarters of 2023 and $49 million in losses over the same period. However, the company's stock price experienced a boost last month after announcing its plans to launch a streaming platform. This platform, as Truth Social CEO Devin Nunes explained, will be a beacon of free speech, ensuring that creators aren't silenced. This exciting development holds the promise of providing a guaranteed platform for creators whose content has been unjustly suppressed, offering a hopeful future for the platform. 

The company added that the service will include "news networks; religious channels; family-friendly content including films and documentaries; and other content that has been canceled is at risk of cancellation, or is being suppressed on other platforms and services."

Trump's net worth will increase significantly thanks to the earnout bonus and the general success of the company's stock price. However, Trump will be unable to pull money out of the stock due to a "lock up" provision that would not allow him to sell his shares until six months after the merger. Nevertheless, the increase in Trump's net worth led him to join a prestigious list of some of the wealthiest people in the world, with the former president having a similar net worth to Joe Ricketts, Gordon Getty, and Tony James, as previously reported by the DC Enquirer. 

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