Over the years, we have seen numerous examples of how businesses benefit from war. Look no further than Lockheed Martin receiving $313 billion and Raytheon $145 billion between 2020–2024 from Pentagon contracts.
We’ve also seen unusual trading before wars start, with politicians investing in companies just before news hits the wires.
But what emerged from Trump Media’s August 10 earnings call may represent a potentially new level of political monetization.
In 2021, Digital World Acquisition Corp. agreed to merge with Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), the company behind Truth Social. Under the agreement, Digital World would acquire TMTG and change its name to Trump Media & Technology Group after the deal was completed. The merger ultimately turned Trump Media into a publicly traded company, with its shares trading on Nasdaq under the ticker DJT.
Trump Media’s largest shareholder is President Donald Trump himself, with an approximate 41.3% stake worth roughly $950 million.
Trump’s decision to retain his business interests while serving as president has drawn criticism. While previous presidents have separated their personal finances from their official duties through asset sales and independently managed trusts, Trump instead chose to retain his business interests while serving as president, raising questions about potential conflicts of interest.
The White House, however, has repeatedly downplayed these concerns. White House spokesman David Ingle has stated that these assets are in a trust managed by Trump’s children, while White House spokesperson Anna Kelly has stated that “Neither the President nor his family has ever engaged—or will ever engage—in conflicts of interest.”
Against this backdrop, the potential financial value of Trump’s public statements becomes particularly relevant.
These concerns also come as Trump’s own trading in Palantir stock has come into question. During the first few months of 2026, Trump bought between $247,000 and $630,000 in Palantir stock before later praising the company on Truth Social, including by using the PLTR ticker.
When Trump stated, “Palantir Technologies (PLTR) has proven to have great war fighting capabilities and equipment. Just ask our enemies!!!” on Truth Social on April 10, the stock rose 3% in just minutes. The post prompted Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) to ask, “Is this another blatant example of Trump manipulating markets?”
Palantir’s technology has reportedly been used to identify targets during the current Iran war, further highlighting the company’s strategic importance to the Trump administration.
It is against this backdrop that Trump Media’s new Truth API becomes particularly noteworthy.
On August 1, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) launched Truth API, a subscription feed to provide quick access to “certain top Truth Social accounts.”
The cost of receiving updates from Trump, who now has around 13 million followers, is approximately 60,000–100,000 per month. At that price, just ten customers could generate between 7.2 million and 12 million annually for TMTG.
More notably, Kevin McGurn, the Interim Chief Executive Officer of Trump Media & Technology Group, stated during its August earnings call that this new initiative already had “more than ten customer agreements signed to date.”
This comes as the company itself reveals that it only had $1.7 million in quarterly revenue and a $238.1 million quarterly loss. While it is true that new companies require spending money to develop their brand and may operate at a loss during their first few years, this is a staggering disparity.
The earnings report also lays out the company’s plans to expand the initiative, with McGurn stating, “We’re also working through an expansion of the Truth API for retail trading.”
The potential conflict is not limited to Trump’s social-media posts. The company also relies on speculative assets for its growth. By the end of July, Trump Media owned roughly 14,139 Bitcoin with approximately $1.2 billion in Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related assets, as discussions about the crypto CLARITY Act continue.
By August 20, as President Trump hosted crypto executives at the White House, he continued to call for passage of the act. In response, Bitcoin rose by 11.5%.
Still, the broader issue has become a topic of mainstream news and scrutiny. Recently, House Ethics Committee Chair Michael Guest has come under scrutiny for potentially violating the STOCK Act and the associated financial entanglements involved.
Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) have called on the SEC to investigate the API arrangement over conflict-of-interest concerns, with the senators calling it “a shocking abuse of the office of the President and the trust of the American public for his personal gain.”
With Trump Media’s new Truth API, more questions are being raised about the influence of political power on financial markets. As reported by Axios, futures trading provides us with a glimpse of “suspicious trading” occurring even minutes before announcements regarding the Iran war arrived.
Trump’s public statements have the potential to move financial markets. Now, a company in which he owns roughly 41% is selling customers faster access to those statements. Where does political influence end and private profit begin?
