“Keep your hands off Trump Tower!” ‘screamed’ the text message in capital letters that was sent on Sunday to potential donors of money for the former president of the United States. Donald Trump, of course, was referring to one of his most prized real estate assets, and the risk of it being taken away from him. The message was a first attempt to mobilize his followers to give money to the Republican candidate to alleviate the pressure that New York Attorney General Letitia James was putting on his finances in the form of million-dollar fines and threats of seizures in case of not pay them.
This week brought Trump a reprieve from that pressure. An appeals court last Monday reduced his bail by 68%, to $175 million, in a New York fraud case led by James. The next day, his social media company debuted on the stock market, rising 16% and raising his net worth to $7.2 billion. But it is a latent fortune that he cannot sell for six months due to the usual blockages of this type of operation.
Therefore, their financial woes are far from over. Trump’s properties in his iconic New York tower, the site of his famous stair climb in 2015 to announce his then-unthinkable bid for the US presidency, are still at risk of being confiscated if the $454 million verdict in his contra is upheld on appeal and he does not pay.
The same happens with other properties that make up a relevant part of his fortune. The legal problems, which go far beyond the New York fraud case, have left Trump in an unusual position: The Republican presidential nominee is a veteran of numerous bankruptcies and failed businesses and has risen through the ranks of the richest people in the world, but he also faces the greatest demand for liquidity, for cash, of his entire career.
With Trump narrowly leading President Joe Biden in polls heading into the November election, his financial ups and downs are far more important than any of his previous problems. While his most ardent supporters have largely overlooked his criminal allegations and financial pressures, he has used much of his campaign funds to pay his bills. Trump’s top political action committees have spent $63.9 million on legal fees since January 2023, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
The prospect of a cash crunch is both a burden and a call to action for Trump’s campaign, which lags significantly behind Biden’s in fundraising. The former president’s political and legal teams from New York to Palm Beach have focused on posting bail, as well as reorganizing the campaign and the Republican National Committee. Trump has been seen at his Mar-a-Lago resort in recent weeks dining and meeting with potential donors instead of on the campaign trail, as his campaign is aware of the need for money.
2020 A prosecution over paying money to a porn star before the 2016 election is scheduled to begin April 15 in Manhattan. The billionaire is quite a braggart about his wealth. Last week, he said on Truth Social that he had nearly $500 million in cash, citing his “hard work, talent and luck.”
His fortune, a myth in question
“I have a lot of cash and a big company,” he said Monday outside a court hearing for the hush money case, while also touting the value of his brand. “I would also like to be able to use some of my cash to get elected.” It’s unclear whether Trump actually has nearly half a billion available; exaggerations about his wealth are what got him in trouble with the state of New York in the first place. James demonstrated at trial that he and the Trump Organization overvalued his assets, and the findings against him will not only affect his bank account but also one of his self-proclaimed greatest strengths: financial ability.
The trial “burst the bubble of this mythology that he has built around himself and his success and the incredible value of his assets,” said Jennifer Rodgers, a former federal prosecutor who has followed Trump’s legal troubles. “He’s apparently more angry about that than about the criminal case.” At the same time, the financial reach of Trump’s businesses extends around the world. His politics may help boost his business, with developers and foreign governments warned that he is running for the White House while he simultaneously seeks big investments that can generate big profits.
Trump’s campaign declined to comment on his wealth, beyond noting the business on his social media company. Caroline Leavitt, a company spokeswoman, said Biden is “the only man running for president who is courting favors with foreign countries.” With his share fortune in Trump Media (DJT), he for the first time joined the ranks of the world’s 500 richest people on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Trump owns shares worth $4.6 billion at the close of trading on Tuesday.
