Trump Media & Technology Group’s Truth API became available to institutional customers on Aug. 1, giving trading firms rapid, machine-readable access to posts from influential Truth Social accounts, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s account.
Summary
- August 1 launch gives institutions millisecond access to influential Truth Social posts with continuous coverage.
- Schiff and Warren asked the SEC to investigate whether the paid feed violates securities laws.
- Trump’s trust holds 41% of Trump Media, linking the product’s revenue directly to his wealth.
The launch followed a July 16 Form 8-K in which Trump Media said it had already signed customers and was onboarding additional partners. The company has not publicly identified those customers or disclosed how many subscriptions it has sold.
Truth API sells faster delivery of public posts
Trump Media describes Truth API as its first data-licensing product. The feed provides posts through a low-latency connection designed for high-frequency and algorithmic trading firms. It offers continuous coverage, delivery within milliseconds and a searchable archive dating to 2022.
Interim CEO Kevin McGurn said the service provides direct access to the platform’s “most market-moving Truths.” He also said Trump Media expects the product to become an ongoing, high-margin revenue source. Those revenue expectations remain forward-looking company claims rather than reported financial results.
The company has not published an official price list. Senators Adam Schiff and Elizabeth Warren cited reports placing subscriptions between $60,000 and $100,000 per month. Therefore, the widely repeated $100,000 price should be treated as a reported upper estimate, not a company-confirmed standard fee.
Trump Media says the underlying posts remain publicly available. However, automated customers can receive and process them faster than users who refresh the platform, rely on notifications or manually monitor accounts. That speed difference matters when algorithms can react to policy announcements within milliseconds.
Insider trading claims face an uncertain legal test
Writer James Surowiecki argued that the arrangement may involve government information being monetized for private benefit. Former SEC regional director Marc Fagel offered a more cautious assessment, calling insider-trading liability a “defensible argument” but “not slam-dunk.” Both comments are legal opinions, not findings by a regulator or court.
Federal insider-trading cases generally require more than an information advantage. Under the misappropriation theory recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court, prosecutors ordinarily must show that confidential information was taken for securities trading in breach of a duty owed to its source. SEC rules also focus on trading while aware of material nonpublic information.
That creates a key unresolved question. If a presidential post becomes publicly visible at the same time the API distributes it, Trump Media may argue that subscribers are paying for speed and formatting rather than nonpublic information. Many financial-data companies sell faster access to information that is technically public.
However, critics could examine whether paying customers ever receive a post before ordinary users can access it, whether unpublished policy information enters the feed or whether any subscriber knows information was obtained through a breach of duty. Purchasing a data subscription alone would not automatically establish insider trading.
Trump Media rejected the senators’ argument, saying they had created a new insider-trading theory based on publicly available information. That response states the company’s legal position. It does not prevent the SEC from reviewing the product’s design, timing records or customer communications.
Trump’s 41% stake sharpens the U.S. ethics dispute
Trump Media’s latest ownership disclosure says the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust holds 114.75 million shares, equal to about 41% of the company. Donald Trump Jr. serves as sole trustee, while President Trump is the trust’s settlor and sole beneficiary.
The ownership structure means successful Truth API revenue could benefit the company and, indirectly, the value of the trust’s stake. It does not mean subscription payments go directly to the president. Share prices, operating costs, corporate decisions and other business results determine how product revenue affects shareholder wealth.
Schiff and Warren asked SEC Chair Paul Atkins to investigate whether the feed violates federal securities law or weakens market fairness. They argued that presidential posts may contain policy information capable of moving stocks, currencies and commodities while Trump retains a large financial interest in the platform distributing them.
The senators’ request also adds another political dispute to Trump Media’s expansion into financial and crypto-related services. As previously reported, the company posted a $405.9 million first-quarter loss after large unrealized markdowns on Bitcoin, Cronos and securities. Revenue for the quarter reached $871,200.
Meanwhile, Trump Media-linked wallets moved 2,650 BTC to Crypto.com in May. The company is also exploring wider financial products and a possible Truth Social corporate separation connected to its planned TAE Technologies transaction.
The SEC has not announced an investigation
The SEC acknowledged receiving the senators’ letter but had not publicly announced an investigation, subpoena, enforcement case or formal conclusion as of Aug. 2. SEC investigations are often confidential, meaning the absence of a public notice does not establish whether staff members are privately reviewing the matter.
The next verifiable developments could include an SEC response to Congress, a Trump Media filing describing customer numbers or revenue, or disclosures explaining whether API recipients receive posts simultaneously with ordinary Truth Social users.
Trump Media shares closed at $9.86 on July 31, down $0.52 from the previous close. That session occurred before the Saturday launch, so the move cannot be attributed to Truth API becoming available. U.S. markets were closed during the weekend criticism, leaving no verified post-launch stock reaction.
For now, the central dispute remains unresolved. Trump Media presents Truth API as a conventional paid data service that distributes public information more efficiently. Critics argue that the president’s ownership, government role and ability to move markets make the arrangement unlike an ordinary social-media feed.
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