An Abu Dhabi royal signed a secret deal with the Trump family to buy a stake in their cryptocurrency venture, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing company documents and people familiar with the matter.

Emissaries of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan inked a deal with Eric Trump to purchase a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for $500 million, four days before Donald Trump’s inauguration last year, according to the WSJ.

The first installment was $250 million, of which $187 million was directed to Trump family entities, the paper said. At least $31 million was set to go to entities linked with the family of Steve Witkoff, a World Liberty co-founder and the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East. Another $31 million went to an entity tied to the crypto venture’s other co-founders Zak Folkman and Chase Herro, the WSJ said.

A World Liberty spokesman told WSJ the investment was to ensure the company continued to grow, and that Trump and Witkoff had no involvement in the deal. A White House spokesperson told the paper that Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children. The WSJ cited a person familiar with Tahnoon’s investment that the sheikh and a few co-investors completed a deal in World Liberty after reviewing it for some months.

The Wall Street Journal said the remaining $250 million was due by July 15, 2025, and it couldn’t determine how the funds may have been distributed.

Tahnoon is the United Arab Emirates national security adviser, a deputy ruler of the emirate and was handed charge in 2023 of the $1 trillion Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

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