Very critical of cryptocurrencies until recently, the future president proclaimed himself their champion during his campaign and is, according to American media, looking for crypto-compatible profiles for key positions in the future government.
The action of Donald Trump's media group soared on Monday at the end of the session on the New York Stock Exchange, catapulted by information from Financial Times on the possible takeover of a cryptocurrency exchange platform. The title of Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) accelerated in the last minutes and closed up 16.65%.
According to the Financial TimesTMTG is said to be in advanced discussions with the American stock market giant Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) with a view to acquiring its subsidiary Bakkt. Asked by AFP, ICE declined to comment. Contacted, Bakkt did not immediately respond. This platform was launched in 2018 by ICE which wanted to position itself in the digital currencies market and help popularize them among the general public.
Pay for your coffee in bitcoin
The group notably entered into a partnership with Starbucks, which offered subscribers to its loyalty program the possibility of paying for their coffee in bitcoins. Bakkt was then listed on the stock market in October 2021 and signed, at the same time, a partnership with Mastercard providing for the issuance of loyalty points in digital currencies for cardholders. But the platform has not managed to achieve sufficient scale and has indicated several times, since February, that it presents a risk of cessation of activity.
Since its launch, it has never been profitable, even if its losses have been reduced over the years. Bakkt had 6.5 million accounts at the end of September, according to its quarterly results. The difficulties of the young company had weighed down its stock price, divided by more than 100 compared to its highest in October 2021. Boosted by the information from Financial TimesBakkt stock ended up 162.46% on Monday. Parent company of the social network Truth Social, launched in early 2022, TMTG raises questions about its economic model.
The group thus achieved only $2.6 million in turnover over the first three quarters of the year, and recorded a loss of $363 million. Donald Trump controls 52.9% of the capital, a stake valued at around $3.8 billion at Monday's closing price. Very critical of cryptocurrencies until recently, the real estate developer proclaimed himself their champion during his campaign. He even linked his name to a new digital currency platform, World Liberty Financial, in which he has a financial interest.
According to American media, the president-elect's team is looking for crypto-compatible profiles for key positions in the future government and is consulting industry leaders to define a regulatory framework favorable to the growth of the sector.
