Circle shareholder sues Trump over UAE crypto deals, citing up to $82 million in potential annual revenue
A Circle shareholder filed a derivative lawsuit alleging UAE-linked transactions enriched President Trump’s businesses, violated the Foreign Emoluments Clause and diverted stablecoin business from Circle’s USDC to World Liberty Financial’s USD1. The complaint focuses on a $500 million investment in World Liberty and MGX’s $2 billion Binance investment, settled in USD1, which could generate reserve income for World Liberty. It estimates Circle might have earned $70 million to $82 million annually if the funds had instead backed USDC, while noting this is a conditional estimate, not an established loss. Binance and World Liberty dispute claims that Binance arranged the USD1 settlement. The plaintiff seeks to stop alleged foreign benefits and recover disputed proceeds; a court has not ruled on the allegations.
