Circle shareholder sues Trump over UAE crypto deals, citing up to $82 million in potential annual revenue

A Circle shareholder sued President Donald Trump, alleging UAE-linked cryptocurrency payments enriched his family and diverted business from USDC.The complaint, filed Oct. 22 in Washington federal court, challenges a $500 million investment in Trump's World Liberty Financial and a separate $2 billion transaction settled using its USD1 stablecoin.The lawsuit alleges that “No president in American history has profited from his office so brazenly,” arguing that the payments violated constitutional restrictions on benefits from foreign governments.J. Benjamin Greenberg, a former Circle employee, brought the case on the company's behalf. The complaint says he currently holds 10,000 Class A shares of the USDC stablecoin issuer.A UAE stake followed by a $2 billion stablecoin paymentThe parties agreed to the first deal four days before Trump's January 2025 inauguration. Aryam, an investment vehicle allegedly linked to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE national security adviser, agreed to pay $500 million for 49% of World Liberty.The complaint says $187 million of the $250 million initial installment went to Trump-linked entities. The remaining $250 million was due in July, after ...