$500M UAE Deal Links Sheikh Tahnoon to Trump Firm

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$500 Million UAE Deal Ties Sheikh Tahnoon to Trump-Linked Financial Firm

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: February 02, 2026

Key Takeaways

Sheikh Tahnoon’s fund invested $500 million for a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial, with Trump-linked entities receiving $187 million;
G42-connected executives joined the board, and soon after, the US approved advanced AI chip exports to the UAE;
Lawmakers questioned potential conflicts of interest, though officials insisted neither Trump nor Witkoff influenced US policy decisions.

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$500 Million UAE Deal Ties Sheikh Tahnoon to Trump-Linked Financial Firm

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An Abu Dhabi investment fund backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE's national security advisor, bought a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for $500 million.

The arrangement, finalized in January 2025, saw nearly half of the payment made immediately. Around $187 million was paid to entities managed by the Trump family using business structures such as DT Marks DEFI LLC and DT Marks SC LLC.

There were also at least $31 million distributed to companies associated with co-founders, including relatives of Steve Witkoff, as well as connections to Zak Folkman and Chase Herro.

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Executives from G42, an artificial intelligence (AI) company also linked to Sheikh Tahnoon, helped run the investment business Aryam Investment 1 and accepted board seats at World Liberty Financial.

Following the transaction, the US government agreed to provide advanced AI chips to the UAE, a change from previous US policy due to concerns about G42 connections.

A fund led by Sheikh Tahnoon, called MGX, also reportedly used the World Liberty USD1 stablecoin in a $2 billion funding arrangement related to Binance $13.98B .

Some lawmakers voiced concerns about possible conflicts of interest. However, spokespersons from World Liberty and the White House stated that neither Donald Trump nor Steve Witkoff was involved in the discussions, and said that the deal did not influence US policymaking.

Meanwhile, Nu Holdings has obtained conditional authorization from the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a new national bank, Nubank, NA, in the United States. What did the company say? Read the full story.