More than 10 companies have subscribed to a new service from Trump Media that gives Wall Street traders faster access to potentially market-moving posts published on Donald Trump’s Truth Social platform.
The service, known as Truth API, launched in early August and provides subscribers with early access to posts from some of the most influential accounts on the social media platform.
Trump Media interim CEO Kevin McGurn said the service’s first customers are mainly high-frequency trading firms. Subscribers are reportedly paying between $60,000 and $100,000 per month for access.
Service Raises Market and Ethical Questions
Truth API has attracted attention because Trump frequently uses Truth Social to make political and economic announcements that can influence financial markets.
By receiving those posts faster, institutional investors and trading firms could potentially gain an advantage when making investment decisions.
The arrangement has raised legal and ethical questions because Trump’s family remains the majority shareholder of Trump Media, while the company could generate revenue from providing faster access to the president’s public statements.
Trump Media said the service is expected to become a new and potentially significant source of revenue for the company.
McGurn said the company expects Truth API to develop into a “meaningful” and sustainable business.
Trump Media Reports $238m Quarterly Loss
The launch of Truth API comes as Trump Media reported a $238 million loss for the second quarter of the year.
The loss, covering April through June, was more than 10 times the loss recorded during the same period a year earlier.
Despite the large loss, the company reported revenue of $1.7 million, representing an 89% increase from the same period the previous year.
Trump Media said it ended the quarter with approximately $2 billion in total assets, including about $1.9 billion in financial assets such as cash, short-term investments and digital currencies.
Company Expands Beyond Social Media
Trump Media has increasingly moved into businesses outside its traditional social media operations.
The company has expanded into cryptocurrency holdings and clean-energy investments while exploring opportunities involving technology companies, news organisations and betting markets.
Analyst Markus Thielen of 10x Research described the company as a crypto holdings business built around a media operation, arguing that much of its recent losses have been linked to its cryptocurrency strategy.
The company has said it intends to refocus on its social media business while continuing to explore additional sources of revenue.
Earlier this month, Trump Media also abandoned plans for a partnership with Crypto.com that would have introduced prediction-market features to Truth Social.
