Circle Shareholder Sues Trump Over Alleged $2 Billion UAE Crypto Deal Profits

UAE crypto deals — A shareholder of stablecoin issuer Circle has filed a lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump, alleging he unconstitutionally profited from $2 billion in cryptocurrency deals with the United Arab Emirates.

The lawsuit, filed on Thursday by former Circle employee J. Benjamin Greenberg, alleges a member of the UAE’s ruling family agreed to pay $500 million into World Liberty Financial, a decentralized finance project co-founded by Trump and his sons. It further claims an Abu Dhabi government investment fund provided $2 billion via the project’s USD1 stablecoin product.

The suit contends these arrangements constitute “the oldest form of public corruption,” alleging Trump provided the Emirati leadership with access to advanced AI chips and pardoned a convicted felon in return for the crypto investments. The defendants named are President Trump, World Liberty Financial, and U.S. Middle East Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.

President Trump, who campaigned on supporting the crypto industry, has denied any conflicts of interest. The lawsuit emerges amid ongoing political debate over crypto regulation, following the recent blocking of the Clarity Act digital asset legislation which Trump had backed.