Companies with ties to President Donald Trump and his family are staffing up with lawyers and lobbyists, as Democrats threaten sweeping probes if they flip either chamber of Congress in the midterm elections.
With polls and prediction markets favoring a change in power, firms with connections to the Trumps — from cryptocurrency businesses, to venture capital and prediction markets — are already preparing for the possibility of congressional inquiries, according to people familiar with the matter, some of whom requested anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Companies and individuals linked to the family, including prediction market firms like Polymarket and Kalshi, rare-earth magnet maker Vulcan Elements Inc., and Changpeng Zhao, the crypto leader who received a presidential pardon, have moved to hire prominent lobbyists and lawyers — some with ties to Democratic lawmakers — ahead of the anticipated onslaught.
While Trump and his family insist that their activities are well within the law, the flurry of hiring suggests boardrooms are readying their defenses. Congressional Democrats have said they’re eager to investigate the lucrative intermingling of government policy and the president’s personal business interests.
Companies are “starting to evaluate their own risk portfolios, preparing for how to handle requests when they come in, and thinking through their narrative, story and potential response,” said Sean Clerget, senior principal at Cozen O’Connor, where he advises clients on congressional investigations. “For business ventures that members of the administration and family members have been involved in — Democrats have been very clear about how they want to scrutinize those.”
Democrats have already signaled plans to put certain Trump family businesses in their crosshairs: they’ve sent demands for information to the cryptocurrency platform co-founded by Trump and his sons, World Liberty Financial; 1789 Capital, the venture firm where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, and highlighted its portfolio companies, including Vulcan. They’ve also sent a letter to the Department of Justice about Zhao, the billionaire co-founder of Binance — the crypto firm that helped develop a stablecoin for a company partly owned by the president — and how he received a pardon last year. A Binance spokesperson said the company provided World Liberty with standard listing and other services it provides to a wide range of projects.
“We are going to look at any and all schemes and enterprises raising possible illegality or conflict of interest,” said Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat and member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Meaningful roadblocks
In their demands so far, Democrats have wanted to know whether companies in the Trumps’ inner circle are receiving contracts or other government favors.
Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, a Virginia Democrat and a member of the House Committee on Ethics, said that subpoena power that comes with a congressional majority could be used to learn more about “any dealings where there’s clear and convincing evidence of wrongdoing.”
But inquiries could face meaningful roadblocks. Some documents could be tucked out of reach in foreign nations: World Liberty Financial accepted a $500 million investment from a vehicle helmed by Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a transaction Democrats already singled out. Congress has limited authority to compel any foreign nationals based abroad to testify or produce documents.
They could also fail to uncover wrongdoing. Companies with links to the Trumps insist their relationships and business practices are legal.
Senate Democrat Ron Wyden opened an investigation into potential conflicts at Affinity Partners, Jared Kushner’s $6 billion private equity firm, in 2024. But that inquiry never resulted in criminal or civil charges.
The Justice Department, which has yielded to Trump’s personal preferences in his second term, also appears unlikely to pursue cases against his corporate allies, some legal experts said. Trump and his family are intimately aware of the president’s broad legal protections and pardon powers, after years of other criminal investigations into his activities.
“A Democrat sweep isn’t going to remove the current blockers to the DOJ, Treasury or SEC opening an investigation,” said Noelle Acheson, who writes the Crypto is Macro Now newsletter.
The president’s eldest son, Trump Jr., has said in private conversations he isn’t worried about congressional investigations and that attacks from Democrats have increased his popularity in the past, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to speak candidly. A representative for Trump Jr. declined to comment, and representatives for Eric Trump did not respond to a request for comment.
The Trump sons have publicly maintained that as private citizens, they’re entitled to take advisory positions and invest in companies.
“Democrats have no agenda to improve the lives of Americans—their only agenda is to continue their decade long witch hunt against President Trump,” White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said in a statement.
‘Getting under his skin’
Still, Democrats will likely look to orient their 2028 presidential campaign as a contrast to Trump. Needling the president serves its own political purpose, according to Aaron Cutler, who leads the Government Relations and Public Affairs practice at Hogan Lovells Cadwalader.
“I think with this president it’s just getting under his skin and annoying him is the highest goal for congressional Democrats — and frustrating those around him.”
Congressional offices are required to pursue investigations with a legislative purpose, and risk being accused of spending taxpayer money on partisan muckraking. That said, most in the party feel that drawing attention to the myriad ways that the president has enriched himself will provide a useful contrast to voters struggling to make ends meet.
“I see no division within the Democratic party in terms of the desire to stop the illegal behavior and to hold the administration accountable,” said Melanie Stansbury, a congresswoman from New Mexico.
These are companies affiliated with Trump’s family already drawing scrutiny, including some that have added to their legal and lobbying teams as the midterms approach:
World Liberty Financial
One of the largest sources of Trump’s crypto wealth last year was World Liberty Financial, a virtual currency platform he co-founded with his sons, along with presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and his family, in the months leading up to the 2024 election. World Liberty generated $594 million for Trump last year alone, according to his financial disclosures.
The company introduced two virtual assets: WLFI and USD1, a stablecoin pegged to the dollar. Both offer ways for the president and his family to profit. A Trump family-affiliated entity owns about 38% of the equity in World Liberty’s parent company, and receives 75% of WLFI token sale proceeds, minus certain costs.
Powerful backers in the Middle East supported World Liberty’s business in its first year, helping boost adoption of its tokens and adding to the Trump family’s wealth.
Days before Trump took office, an investment vehicle backed by Tahnoon, the United Arab Emirates national security adviser, bought a 49% stake in World Liberty for $500 million, a development first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Later, UAE fund MGX — chaired by Tahnoon — used $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in crypto exchange Binance. Stablecoin issuers typically earn money from investing the funds they receive from users into safe assets like Treasuries, and collecting interest. The deal helped push USD1 to one of the largest stablecoins in circulation.
“As has been previously reported, MGX selected the currency utilized as the medium for its investment into Binance based on a set of business suitability criteria that it independently developed without input from Binance,” Binance said in a statement.
Backing from other foreign financiers added to the company’s earnings. Crypto billionaire Justin Sun said he purchased $45 million of WLFI tokens, according to a lawsuit he filed against World Liberty.
The company is branching out further: this year it secured preliminary conditional approval to operate a trust bank. Full approval would grant World Liberty permission to issue its USD1 directly. It has used a separate company called BitGo to issue the stablecoin and manage its reserves.
“Since its inception, World Liberty Financial has complied with all applicable U.S. laws and regulations,” said David Wachsman, a spokesman for World Liberty. “We took the further step of applying for a bank charter from the OCC that would require continuous federal oversight regardless of the administration in power. It’s troubling that Congress might baselessly target a compliant company that has dedicated itself to expanding access to the U.S. dollar when there are a plethora of issues afflicting the American public that need to be addressed.”
The company has hired staffers away from industry heavyweights such as Coinbase, Robinhood and Hidden Road. In August, it promoted Mack McCain to be its chief legal and administrative officer; he was previously chief of staff and associate general counsel for regulatory affairs at Robinhood, according to his LinkedIn profile.
At least one of World Liberty’s partners also added lobbying muscle. BitGo hired Squire Patton Boggs in July for the first time — the same month that the firm hired Giancarlo Pellegrini as chair of its congressional oversight practice. Pellegrini previously worked for California Democrat Robert Garcia.
Binance & CZ
The world’s biggest crypto exchange, Binance, has been key in getting World Liberty’s stablecoin USD1 off the ground.
The UAE’s MGX fund used $2 billion worth of USD1 to buy a stake in Binance at a time when USD1 barely had any market cap and was less than two months old. Binance has also been promoting USD1 to its users without taking a revenue cut from World Liberty’s stablecoin revenues. By contrast, stablecoin issuer Circle pays Binance monthly incentive fees tied to USDC balances on the Binance platform. Binance took a stake in Circle in September.
Changpeng Zhao, Binance’s former CEO and biggest owner, was pardoned by Trump after he pleaded guilty to failing to enforce robust anti-money-laundering measures. The exchange paid more than $4 billion in fines and Zhao spent four months in a US jail.
Binance has continued to draw the attention of US authorities: federal authorities are currently investigating Binance over possible sanctions violations, Bloomberg reported earlier. Justice Department investigations can end without charges being filed. The DOJ is also scrutinizing whether Binance breached a landmark 2023 settlement with the US government, Bloomberg News reported.
Earlier this year, Zhao hired Tiger Hill Partners, a government relations firm whose co-founder, Milan Dalal, worked for Democratic Senator Mark Warner and was a staffer on the Senate Banking Committee.
Zhao has privately said that he wants to challenge previous portrayals of his pardon, according to people familiar with the matter. He has also been sensitive to Binance’s affiliation with World Liberty Financial, some of the people said.
A representative for Zhao declined to comment.
1789 Capital
Trump Jr. revealed he was joining “anti-woke” venture capital firm 1789 Capital, co-founded by former Bank of America executive Omeed Malik, days after his father’s reelection in November 2024. 1789 Capital had raised about $200 million before Trump’s return to the White House, Bloomberg previously reported. By this year it managed about $3 billion in assets, disclosures show, and has invested in a range of companies spanning AI, prediction markets and defense technologies. A spokeswoman for the firm said that Trump Jr. is not on its investment committee, which includes Malik, co-founder Chris Buskirk and partner Paul Abrahimzadeh.
The firm’s portfolio has already put it in Democrats’ sights. In an August letter, Jamie Raskin, the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, asked the firm for details on its decision to bring Trump Jr. aboard and to hand over contacts with government officials. The Maryland congressman said he was particularly interested in two 1789 investments: defense contractor Anduril Industries Inc., and Vulcan, the rare earth magnet maker that secured a Defense Department loan following an investment from 1789 Capital.
Lawyers for 1789 Capital fired back at the congressional letter, saying it included factual errors and mischaracterizations. “1789 welcomes legitimate Congressional oversight, but it has no intention of being held hostage to political gamesmanship,” the response said.
Asked for comment, a spokeswoman for 1789 said that related coverage had produced “no shred of wrongdoing, only false accusations.”
Vulcan Elements retained Marcus Childress, who co-leads Akin Gump’s congressional investigations practice, according to a person familiar with the matter. Squire Patton Boggs and Invariant have both registered to lobby for the rare-earth magnet maker since May.
A spokeswoman for Vulcan said the company “maintains a commitment to conducting its business ethically, with integrity, and in compliance with all applicable laws and did not ask or solicit its investors to facilitate the Pentagon loan announced in November 2025. We will continue to engage with Congress in good faith, as we have done for several years.”
Polymarket & Kalshi
Prediction markets that allow users to bet on sports, politics and thousands of other events have become a flashpoint in Trump’s second term, with some states arguing they operate illegal gambling platforms. Two top prediction markets, Polymarket and Kalshi, are both connected to the Trump family. 1789 Capital led Polymarket’s most recent fundraising round at a $21 billion valuation.
Trump Jr. also advises Kalshi, which is waging a state-by-state battle with regulators who say it needs a license to let its users wager on sports. Kalshi contends it’s regulated at the federal level — a contested point that’s widely expected to land in front of the Supreme Court.
Kalshi added a group of Democratic lobbyists from FTP to its team in July, disclosures show. Polymarket hired lobbyist Rob Eskridge, who previously worked for Texas Democrat Al Green, in September. Spokespeople for the two firms declined to comment.
Trump Media & Technology Group Corp.
The parent company of Trump’s Truth Social embarked on a blitz of new business opportunities, including pursuing a merger with a nuclear fusion company. But in one of its most controversial moves, it pitched Wall Street trading firms on a new product: faster feeds from the president’s account. Trump uses Truth Social to post market-moving updates on the Iran war, tariffs and other major announcements.
Warner urged financial firms to reject the service, which costs as much as $100,000 per month. As of August, more than ten customers had signed up, according to the company, which did not respond to a request for comment.
Even with a handful of customers, the product dubbed Truth API could bring in millions of dollars a year to money-losing Trump Media. That’s meaningful because the president is the largest shareholder of the publicly listed company, through a trust that his eldest son oversees. The stake makes up a roughly $1 billion share of the Trump family’s wealth, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Two media organizations sued President Trump over the service, asking a New York court to block the plan, and calling it “extraordinary, corrupt and unconstitutional.”
Trump memecoin
The $Trump memecoin was released days before Trump’s inauguration by Fight Fight Fight, helmed by long-time Trump promoter Bill Zanker. Fight Fight Fight shares 80% of the total tokens issued by the project with CIC Digital LLC, an affiliate of the Trump Organization — subject to a three-year “unlocking” schedule, according to the memecoin’s website. The trove held by the two companies is worth $1.49 billion at current prices.
CIC Digital and the owner of Fight Fight Fight also receive revenue from trading activities involving the memecoin. Last year alone, Trump reported $636 million in memecoin-related income, per his financial disclosures.
In a presidential first, Trump has been attending events for top memecoin holders, with the latest one scheduled at Trump National Golf Club on Nov. 22. The events have attracted some foreign investors, including Sun, who also purchased World Liberty Financial’s tokens. He attended the first high-profile dinner for top Trump memecoin holders with the president in 2025, before his relationship with World Liberty soured.
Blumenthal last year opened an inquiry into the $Trump memecoin, requesting details on Fight Fight Fight’s ownership and investors.
American Ventures
Trump Jr. and Eric Trump backed an investment firm that spread its bets across a range of public companies, including in defense and critical minerals industries that benefit from government support.
The pair invested in deals tied to a tungsten mining project in Kazakhstan, securities filings show. One of the companies involved, Cove Kaz Capital Group, said it received early, non-binding interest from the Export-Import Bank of the US in providing up to $900 million in financing for the project, which holds Kazakhstan’s largest undeveloped tungsten supply.
In another investment, American Ventures backed a small golf-course operator that later unveiled plans to merge with a drone maker, sending its shares soaring. That company, called Powerus, said it received an $82 million order under an existing US government contract for its products.
American Ventures was set up by the investment bank Dominari Holdings Inc., where both Trump Jr. and Eric Trump own minority stakes. A representative for Dominari did not respond to a request for comment.
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Bloomberg news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.