Topline
Former President Donald Trump’s social media company will officially begin trading publicly Tuesday, finally bringing the right-wing platform majority-owned by Trump to market at a gaudy multibillion-dollar valuation after more than two years of roadblocks.
Former President Donald Trump, center, speaks to reporters Monday.
Key Facts
Trump Media and its blank-check partner firm Digital World Acquisition Corp. announced Monday afternoon their business combination is complete.
The new entity will begin trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange Tuesday under the ticker symbol $DJT, a nod to the former president’s initials.
Trump will own between 58% and 69% of Trump Media when it officially goes public.
Digital World shares extended their Monday gain to about 25% to $46 following the announcement, sending the implied market value for Trump Media to between $5 billion and $7 billion, pending how many shares in the new entity existing Digital World shareholders redeem.
Key Background
Trump’s stake in the media venture is worth roughly $3.6 billion, following Monday’s rally. Digital World and Trump Media first announced their intent to merge in October 2021, about nine months after Trump left the Oval Office. Digital World is a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), a firm whose purpose is to find a private company to take public, allowing Trump Media to hit the market without the hurdles associated with a traditional public offering. The multibillion-dollar market capitalization Trump Media will likely fetch when trading begins Tuesday is eye popping for a company with its financials, as its $3.4 million in revenue for the first nine months of 2023 implies a price-to-sales valuation more than 100 times richer than those of other public social media companies like Reddit, Pinterest and Snap. The flashy valuation is likely more a result of investors hitching their wagons to Trump, who recently called Truth Social, the social media platform owned by Trump Media, the “REAL VOICE OF AMERICA.”
Tangent
Trump Media will begin trading as its top shareholder faces a litany of legal headaches. A criminal trial against Trump over alleged “hush money” payments tied to an extramarital affair will begin April 15 and Trump needs to pay $175 million to New York by April 4 for a civil fraud case. Experts suggest Trump will not be able to pledge his stake in Trump Media as collateral for the fine.
Further Reading
