Recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission reveals that former President Donald Trump has significantly increased his total fortune by nearly $2 billion. This filing, a Schedule 13D form submitted by Trump himself, states that he is now eligible to receive an additional 36 million shares of common stock in Trump Media & Technology Group, the company that owns the Truth Social social media platform.
The reason behind this increase in shares is due to Trump meeting the criteria of three separate “earnout” provisions outlined in the original merger agreement between his company and Digital World Acquisition Corp., which took place in March. According to these provisions, if the stock price remained at or above $12.50 per share, Trump would receive an additional 13.5 million shares. If it stayed at or above $15 per share, he would earn another 13.5 million shares. Furthermore, if the stock remained at $17.50 per share or better, he would be entitled to an additional 9 million shares.
However, in order for Trump to qualify for these earnout shares, the stock had to maintain or exceed these prices for a minimum of 20 trading days within any 30-day period following the merger. Remarkably, Trump managed to fulfill these requirements in the shortest possible time frame.
“Tuesday, April 23 marked the 20th trading day for Trump Media, and the stock has not traded below that $17.50 level at any point during that timeframe,” CNN reported Friday. The stock price has displayed some fluctuations, yet it never dropped below $22.84, a figure it reached on April 16. Subsequently, it has increased by over 100%, and was hovering at approximately $47 on Friday morning.
“Even though Trump Media plunged since late March, it never came close to breaching levels that would have threatened this bonus,” CNN noted.
At a price of $47 per share, the new holdings acquired by Trump contributed significantly to his net worth, amounting to nearly $1.7 billion. However, it is important to note that this does not mean he has an additional $1.7 billion in cash readily available.
There are certain factors that limit Trump’s ability to access the value of these shares. Firstly, there is a lock-up agreement in place, which prevents Trump and other insiders from selling the stock for a period of six months following the merger in March. Furthermore, if Trump were to sell a substantial portion of his stock in the company, it would likely drive down the stock price, making it more challenging for him to realize the current value of all his shares.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Trump is ranked 314th with a total fortune of $8.18 billion. The majority of this wealth, approximately $5.7 billion, is tied up in Trump Media, which is traded under the ticker symbol DJT, representing the former president’s initials.
After receiving an earnout share bonus, Trump now owns nearly 65 percent of the company, equivalent to a total of 114.75 million shares. Not only is he the largest shareholder, but he also serves as the company’s chairman and is the most popular user on Truth Social, as reported by CNN.
