When your family's crypto company gets a half-billion-dollar investment from a foreign government while you're president, people tend to notice. California Rep. Ro Khanna certainly did, and he's now launched an investigation as ranking member of the Select Committee on China into exactly that scenario.
The focus of the probe is a January 2025 deal involving World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a Trump-backed cryptocurrency firm. According to reports, lieutenants to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan—the U.A.E. national security adviser—quietly signed an agreement to purchase a 49% stake in the company for $500 million.
Following the Money
Here's where it gets interesting. The arrangement would direct $187 million to Trump family entities and another $31 million to entities tied to Steve Witkoff's family. Witkoff happens to be Trump's Middle East envoy, which adds another layer of complexity to an already tangled situation.
"These arrangements are not just a scandal, but may even represent a violation of multiple laws and the United States Constitution," Khanna wrote in a letter to World Liberty Financial CEO Zach Witkoff—Steve's father—requesting documents and answers to 16 questions about conflicts of interest and due diligence, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Khanna has also urged Delaware U.S. Attorney Ben Wallace to investigate a Delaware-based LLC used by the Abu Dhabi buyers for the investment.
In a January statement, Khanna said, "Every American should know that President Trump has betrayed our workers and has allowed our industrial base to be hollowed out. He's been tougher on Canada and our allies than on China and Xi Jinping."
Trump's response? He previously noted he didn't know about the investment, adding "My sons are handling that. My family is handling it."
