A high ranking United Arab Emirates official often referred to as the spy sheikh has taken a massive stake in the Trump family’s ambitious cryptocurrency banking project. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who serves as the UAE’s national security advisor, is the driving force behind StringZ Holding RSC. This entity now holds a forty nine percent stake in WLTC Holdings, the parent company of the planned crypto bank, while an entity tied to the Trump family retains thirty eight percent.
This latest partnership follows a pattern of significant financial injections from the Emirati leader into Donald Trump’s ventures since the start of his second term. In January 2025 alone, Tahnoon and his partners invested five hundred million dollars into World Liberty Financial, a move that funneled roughly two hundred sixty three million dollars directly toward Trump family entities. These dealings come amid a broader surge in foreign licensing revenue for the president’s businesses, which have raked in nearly sixty million dollars from overseas sources over the past year.
The timing and nature of these investments have sparked concerns regarding potential conflicts of interest given Tahnoon’s dual role as a financier and a top government official. The relationship is particularly sensitive because the current administration recently eased restrictions on advanced artificial intelligence chip sales to G42, another UAE state backed AI firm controlled by Tahnoon. Critics suggest that such deep financial ties between a sitting president and a foreign power overseeing critical tech imports could complicate diplomatic neutrality.
In response to the scrutiny, representatives for World Liberty described the venture as a private American fintech firm rather than a political organization and insisted that its governance remains independent from any government influence. A spokesperson emphasized that no employees work for the U.S. government and denied any conflict of interest exists despite refusing to specifically address the reported ownership percentages. Meanwhile, the White House has maintained terms that President Trump consistently acts solely in the best interests of the American people.
