Trump's Crypto Empire Draws Fire from John Oliver

HBO host John Oliver devoted a segment of Last Week Tonight to Donald Trump's expanding crypto business, criticizing the president's growing presence in digital assets as blurring the line between politics and private profit. According to Oliver, Trump's crypto ventures have become the biggest source of wealth for the family, overtaking its traditional real estate and hotel businesses.

Oliver reported that during his first year back in the White House, Trump earned over $2.2 billion, with nearly $1.4 billion coming from crypto-related businesses run by his family. The host also focused on meme coins, comparing them to classic 'pump-and-dump' schemes.

Trump's meme coin reportedly briefly reached a market valuation of nearly $50 billion before crashing by about 92%. Despite the sharp decline, Oliver claimed Trump personally made around $636 million from the project. The host also joked that Melania Trump's token launch was initially thought to be the result of a hacked social media account due to its unexpectedness.

Oliver also highlighted World Liberty Financial, the crypto platform launched by Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Barron Trump before the presidential election. He argued that the project could allow wealthy investors to build closer ties with the White House through large token purchases. The host pointed out that Tron founder Justin Sun invested $75 million into World Liberty Financial and another $37.7 million into Trump-related meme coins while facing an SEC lawsuit.

Oliver also questioned the regulatory changes following Trump's return to office, particularly after former SEC Chair Gary Gensler stepped down and new Chairman Paul Atkins adopted a friendlier stance toward crypto. According to Oliver, more than 60% of ongoing crypto enforcement cases were either dropped or reduced after the leadership change.