Shares of Trump’s Media Group Surge on Rumors of Crypto Site Acquisition

Shares of Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) surged 16.65% by the close of trading on Monday, following reports from the Financial Times about a potential acquisition of a cryptocurrency exchange platform.

According to the report, TMTG is in advanced negotiations with U.S. financial giant Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) to acquire its subsidiary, Bakkt.

When approached for comment, ICE declined to respond, and Bakkt did not provide any statement.

Bakkt was launched in 2018 by ICE with the goal of establishing a foothold in the digital currency market and popularizing cryptocurrencies. The platform even secured a partnership with Starbucks, allowing loyalty program members to pay for their coffee using Bitcoin.

Bakkt went public in October 2021 and signed a deal with Mastercard to enable cryptocurrency-based loyalty rewards for the credit card brand’s users. However, the platform struggled to scale, warning multiple times since February that it might cease operations. As of September, Bakkt had 6.5 million accounts.

Fueled by the same acquisition rumors, Bakkt’s stock skyrocketed 162.46% on Monday.

TMTG, the parent company of the social media network Truth Social, which launched in early 2022, faces questions about its business model. The company reported $2.6 million in revenue for the first nine months of the year but posted a loss of $363 million.

Donald Trump owns 52.9% of TMTG’s capital, a stake valued at approximately $3.8 billion based on Monday’s closing stock price.

Amid a critical period for cryptocurrencies, Trump recently lent his name to a new digital currency platform, World Liberty Financial.