Donald Trump is on the cusp of adding $2.9 billion to his balance sheet. But it won’t help him secure a bond to cover his $455 million fine in New York.
Donald Trump is on the cusp of adding billions of dollars to his balance sheet after shareholders of Digital World Acquisition Corp. voted on Friday to merge with his Trump Media & Technology Group. But not only won’t the expected $2.9 billion windfall not help him pay his fines, it won’t even help him secure a bond to cover those fines while he appeals.
The former president owes New York state more than $455 million in fines and interest after being found liable in February for fraudulently misstating the value of assets for personal gain.
On Friday, shareholders of Digital World, a special purpose acquisition company formed for the sole purpose of combining with another firm, approved the long-planned merger with Trump Media & Technology Group, Trump’s company that owns the Truth Social platform. Once the deal goes through, Trump will own almost 79 million shares in the company. Digital World closed at $36.94 on Friday, valuing Trump’s holdings of stock at around $2.9 billion. Shares in the firm could begin trading publicly as early as Monday with the ticker symbol DJT.
Yet, not only will Trump still not have the money to pay the fine, which is due on Monday, he won’t be able to use the shares, no matter how many billions they are worth, as collateral to secure a bond either, according to three experts in initial public offerings (IPOs).
