For just around $70, you can now become a shareholder in the company that launched former President Donald Trump’s Truth Social platform. The trading of Trump Media & Technology Group, marked by the ticker symbol DJT, kicked off on the Nasdaq this Tuesday morning. This follows the successful merger vote last week with Digital World Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition company.
The company boasts a market capitalization of roughly $2.7 billion. Trump himself holds a 58 percent share in the company, valuing his stake at over $5 billion based on the early trading figures from Tuesday.
“Truth Social is performing exceptionally well. It’s as popular as ever and thriving,” Trump shared with reporters in New York on Monday.
Due to a lockup agreement, Trump is restricted from selling or leveraging his shares in the company for a minimum of six months. This measure aims to prevent a swift sell-off that might undermine investor confidence. However, the company has already significantly increased Trump’s net worth. Following the merger vote on Friday, Trump made his debut on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with a reported net worth of $6.5 billion.
Devin Nunes, the CEO of Trump Media, has publicly voiced his confidence in the social media platform’s long-term success.
In a recent statement, Nunes emphasized, “As a public entity, we are dedicated to our mission of creating a movement to take back the internet from the clutches of Big Tech censorship. We remain committed to providing Americans a sanctuary for free speech and combating the growing legion of censorship advocates.”
However, Trump Media faces a challenging path to profitability, as indicated in a recent SEC filing. Like many new social media ventures, the likelihood of success is slim. In the first nine months of 2023, Trump Media reported revenues of just under $3.4 million while incurring losses of $49 million.
Shares in Digital World Acquisition Corp, the special purpose acquisition company, have seen a notable increase in recent months leading up to the merger, partly due to the support from smaller investors driving up the price.
Trump’s involvement with the company goes beyond being its majority shareholder; he is also the platform’s most visible user. His potential departure from the platform could negatively impact its shares, as acknowledged in a recent SEC filing.
The filing stated, “If Truth Social fails to attract and retain followers or a sufficient audience, if negative trends emerge in social media platforms at large, or if President Trump is unable to dedicate significant time to Truth Social, TMTG’s business could suffer.”