TLDR:
The Circle shareholder lawsuit alleges that two UAE-linked transactions violated the Foreign Emoluments Clause and benefited Trump through World Liberty Financial.
The first transaction involved a $500 million agreement for a 49% stake in World Liberty days before Trump’s January 2025 inauguration.
The complaint also challenges a $2 billion Binance investment settled in World Liberty’s USD1 stablecoin, alleging it benefited Trump’s crypto interests.
Greenberg seeks alleged unlawful profits, additional disclosures and unspecified damages; Circle says it did not participate, while World Liberty rejects the claims.
The Circle shareholder lawsuit puts renewed scrutiny on the Trump family’s crypto business. Greenberg says two UAE-linked transactions violated the Foreign Emoluments Clause. J. Benjamin Greenberg, a former Circle employee and shareholder, filed the derivative complaint in federal court in Washington. He argues the deals benefited President Donald Trump and World Liberty Financial while exposing Circle investors to unfair competition.
The complaint seeks alleged unlawful profits, disclosures about other foreign crypto payments , and unspecified damages. The court has not ruled on the claims. Circle says it had no role in the filing, while World Liberty rejects the allegations as meritless.
Circle Shareholder Lawsuit Centers on Two UAE-Linked Deals
Greenberg filed the Circle shareholder lawsuit on behalf of Circle, the company behind USDC, a dollar-pegged stablecoin. The suit names Trump, World Liberty, U.S. Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff, and four affiliated limited liability companies. It casts USD1, World Liberty’s dollar-backed stablecoin, as a direct competitor to USDC . In the Circle shareholder lawsuit, Greenberg says UAE-linked competition diverted business from Circle and harmed its investors.
Derivative actions let shareholders pursue claims on a company’s behalf, rather than only for themselves. Greenberg’s filing says World Liberty’s stablecoin competition harmed Circle and its investors. Any recovery depends on a court accepting the claims.
The first transaction centers on a $500 million sale of a 49% stake in World Liberty. A vehicle backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed to the purchase days before Trump’s January 2025 inauguration. Tahnoon is the UAE’s national security adviser. The complaint alleges Trump received financial benefits from the transaction after taking office. It describes the funding as foreign-state money flowing into a business linked to the president.
The second deal involves a $2 billion investment in Binance by Abu Dhabi’s MGX fund, which Tahnoon chairs. The payment was made using USD1, according to reporting cited in the complaint.
Greenberg argues the stablecoin transaction helped raise USD1’s profile and value, benefiting Trump’s interests in World Liberty. The Circle shareholder lawsuit frames both deals as alleged foreign benefits tied to Trump’s crypto holdings .
Greenberg Seeks Profit Recovery, Disclosure and Unspecified Damages
The Foreign Emoluments Clause bars federal officeholders from accepting benefits from foreign states without congressional consent. Greenberg asks the court to declare that Trump’s profits violated the restriction. He wants the court to order Trump to return gains it deems unlawful. He also seeks an accounting of foreign crypto-related payments and disclosure of other transactions. The suit requests damages but does not specify an amount. Those requests are allegations and remedies sought, not findings by a court.
Circle said it did not initiate, direct, authorize, or take part in the case. The company emphasized that Greenberg filed as an individual shareholder. World Liberty spokesperson David Wachsman called the claims meritless and said the firm would address them in court. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly described the case as frivolous and denied any conflict of interest. Witkoff’s representative had not responded to requests for comment, according to the report.
The Circle shareholder lawsuit centers on UAE crypto deals amid scrutiny of Trump-family interests. Trump co-founded World Liberty Financial with his sons before taking office and stopped participating in the project in 2025.
The lawsuit focuses on alleged financial benefits. It also points to U.S. approval of advanced AI chip exports to the UAE and Trump’s pardon of convicted Binance founder Changpeng Zhao. The filing alleges those actions intersected with the deals. The case is Greenberg v. Trump , 26-cv-03686, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. No judgment or ruling has resolved the claims.
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