Trump Media to sell high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including president’s
7 verified4 unconfirmed
President Donald Trump's media company announced a plan on Thursday to charge for high-speed access to Truth Social posts, potentially including the president's own, in a service aimed at Wall Street trading firms. Called Truth PSI, the offering would allow institutional subscribers to see posts from top accounts milliseconds ahead of the public, enabling them to trade on market-moving information. Trump is the most popular poster on the platform with 12.9 million followers and, as the largest shareholder of the publicly traded parent company Trump Media & Technology Group, would directly benefit from any revenue. Ethics experts have criticized the move as an improper exploitation of government power for personal profit. The company said it expects to launch the service next month and has already signed up customers, but did not disclose pricing. The announcement comes as the company's stock has fallen about 70% since Trump took office last year.
What’s verified
Trump Media announced a plan to sell high-speed access to Truth Social posts, called Truth PSI, allowing Wall Street firms to see posts from top accounts before the general public.
The most popular poster on Truth Social is President Trump, who has 12.9 million followers and is the biggest shareholder of the publicly traded parent company.
Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University School of Law and government ethics expert, called the plan "brazen corruption" and "an improper exploitation of government power to enrich himself."
The company declined to comment on whether Trump's own posts would be excluded from the service, and the press release referred to "the highest-ranking Truth Social accounts" without naming specific users.
The press release did not state how much customers would be charged for the service.
Trump Media said it expects the service to launch next month and has already signed up customers.
Stock in Trump Media & Technology Group has dropped about 70% since President Trump took office last year.
Not yet confirmed
One source reported that Trump earned $2.2 billion in total in his first year back in office, including $1.4 billion from cryptocurrency businesses and $500 million from an investment firm tied to the United Arab Emirates.
One source reported that conflict of interest laws bar most government officials from owning a company that profits from their office by selling access to their decisions, but the president and vice president are excluded from that provision.
One source reported that Trump Media recently replaced its longtime CEO Devin Nunes with Kevin McGurn.
None of the sources disclose how many customers have signed up for Truth PSI or the specific pricing model.
Key figures
Donald Trump, President of the United States and majority shareholder of Trump Media & Technology Group
Kathleen Clark, law professor at Washington University School of Law and expert in government conflict of interest rules
Truth Social, social media platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group
Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), publicly traded parent company of Truth Social
Sources: The Guardian, abcnews.com
