Eric Trump has publicly denied being involved in Tron’s push to go public via Nasdaq despite sitting on the board of the investment firm handling the deal.
His comment comes as more people question the role of politics in crypto, especially since the Trumps have begun dabbling in digital assets.
President Donald Trump has reportedly made $57 million from NFTs and the launch of his token referred to as $TRUMP, which reportedly became popular earlier in the year. The family also connects with other blockchain startups through advisory roles and investment stakes.
It’s not the first time that their involvement has raised eyebrows. Earlier, World Liberty Financial, a crypto company believed to be affiliated with the Trump camp, made headlines for a lack of transparency. With Tron’s IPO heating up, questions about ethical lines and financial disclosures are intensifying.
Eric Trump posted on X saying he has no “public involvement” in Tron’s reverse merger with SRM Entertainment but still showed strong support for Tron’s founder, Justin Sun, by calling him “a great friend and an icon in the crypto space.”
However, many people felt Eric’s message showed a strong personal interest in the project and its key players despite trying to distance himself from official involvement.
The news that Tron would go public on the Nasdaq by merging with SRM Entertainment gained quick attention because Eric Trump and his brother, Donald Trump Jr., sit on the advisory board of the boutique investment bank leading the deal, Dominari Securities.
This connection linked the Trump family to one of the largest crypto platforms seeking to enter the US stock market. Eric’s post left people wondering whether he could still be involved behind the scenes or indirectly benefit from the deal.
SRM Entertainment also publicly announced on the same day that it had received a $100 million equity investment from an unnamed private investor and said it would change its name to “Tron Inc.” to accumulate TRX tokens as part of a new strategy for a cryptocurrency treasury. The new company will actively hold and invest in crypto, following the same model used by Bitcoin-heavy companies like Strategy.
The founder of the Tron blockchain network, Justin Sun, has joined forces with a Trump-affiliated investment bank to push Tron’s public debut on the Nasdaq through a backdoor listing strategy that is now drawing financial and political attention.
The reverse merger with SRM Entertainment will allow Tron to bypass the traditional, more complex IPO process and instantly become a publicly traded company in the United States because SRM Entertainment is a Florida-based company already listed on the Nasdaq.
SRM will officially change its name to “Tron Inc.” and accumulate large volumes of Tron’s native cryptocurrency, TRX, while Dominari Securities, a subsidiary of Dominari Holdings, handles this entire transaction.
It’s difficult to ignore the Trump family’s indirect influence over the transaction and potential financial upside because Dominari is the exclusive placement agent for a $210 million stock offering tied to the merger, and its offices are located in Trump Tower.
Many people now view Justin Sun’s relationships with the Trump family as a strategic move to strengthen his footing in US financial and political circles. He even attended a private crypto dinner hosted by Donald Trump and is the largest holder of the $TRUMP token.
In addition to these moves, Sun created goodwill with American regulators after purchasing a $75 million stake in World Liberty Financial in 2024, convincing the US Securities and Exchange Commission to quietly pause an ongoing investigation into Sun and the Tron Foundation.
Sun has not taken a formal leadership role in the new Tron Inc. but has a direct channel of influence over how the merged company will operate because he’s been named an advisor to SRM as part of the deal.
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