Trump, the best stock trader among U.S. presidents

Author: Ba Jiuling, Wu Xiaobo Channel

During both of his terms, Trump refused a presidential salary of $400,000 a year, after all, he can earn $2.2 billion a year.

Recently, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics released a lengthy 927-page annual financial disclosure document, which revealed that Trump's personal income in 2025 exceeded $2.2 billion, setting a record for the highest annual income during a presidential term in U.S. history.

What does this figure mean? It exceeds McDonald's net profit in the fourth quarter of last year; if he were to receive the $400,000 statutory presidential salary, Trump would need to go without food and drink for 5,500 years.

In contrast, former President Obama busied himself with writing books, giving global speeches, and taking photos with entrepreneurs after leaving office, with his net worth nearing $70 million by the end of 2025; Biden's net worth before leaving office was about $10 million, less than a fraction of Trump's income for that year.

But Trump hasn't always been so prosperous. In 2024, Trump's total income was only over $600 million, and before taking office, he was fined nearly $500 million by New York State for fraud, and owed Carol $88 million for sexual assault and defamation.

His tricky financial situation was resolved after Trump took office—his annual income soared 3.5 times, and his personal net worth skyrocketed from $2.3 billion in 2024 to $6.5 billion in 2026.

Image Source: Internet

Converted, during his year in the White House, Trump earned an average of $6.02 million per day, or $250,000 per hour. This enormous income is not just from real estate rentals; from cryptocurrencies to resorts, from brand licensing to stock investments, Trump has almost turned the identity of "president" into a business.

Next, let's break down this "report card" and interpret some of Trump's "investment secrets."

1 Where Does the Money Come From?

According to the Wall Street Journal's compilation of the disclosure document, of the $2.2 billion Trump earned last year, $1.4 billion came from cryptocurrencies, accounting for about 64%, and $575 million came from real estate, accounting for about 26%, with the two combined accounting for nearly 90%.

Additionally, there were $86.5 million from lawsuit settlements, $68.6 million from brand licensing fees, and $79.3 million from stock investments.

Image Source: Wall Street Journal

Cryptocurrency is undoubtedly the most dazzling page in Trump's "money-making handbook."

Of the $1.4 billion in cryptocurrency income, $635 million came from the personal meme coin $TRUMP that Trump launched. Unlike cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum that have payment or technical functions, most meme coins have almost no practical use; their value comes more from celebrity effects, internet popularity, and investor speculation.

In January 2025, just two days before returning to the White House and at the height of his popularity, Trump signed an IP licensing agreement with a related company to launch the $TRUMP token. After its launch, the token quickly gained popularity, and Trump collected over $600 million in licensing fees from the arrangement.

Trump posts to promote $TRUMP

Besides $TRUMP, another significant source of Trump's cryptocurrency income came from the WLFI token.

As the 2024 presidential campaign neared its end, the Trump family founded the cryptocurrency company World Liberty Financial (WLFI) and issued the WLFI token. Investors who purchased WLFI tokens could participate in platform governance, enjoy ecological rights, and buy low and sell high in the trading market to profit. In 2025, Trump made a profit of $527 million from WLFI token sales, a ninefold increase from 2024.

Finally, Trump also sold part of his stake in World Liberty Financial last year, earning $263 million.

If Trump has turned cryptocurrency into his most profitable new business, real estate remains his old profession and foundation.

In 2025, the U.S. real estate market was sluggish, with home sales hovering at a 30-year low. In a poor market, most of Trump's real estate projects performed mediocrely, with annual income levels comparable to or lower than what Trump reported ten years ago.

However, among a series of unremarkable real estate projects, two categories stood out—resorts and golf courses, which saw a 15% increase in annual income.

The biggest increase naturally came from the club that Trump frequently visited since taking office.

Mar-a-Lago is Trump's most famous resort, referred to by him as the "Winter White House," where he often hosts events. In 2025, Mar-a-Lago's income exceeded $77 million, soaring by 50%, while the nearby golf club also saw a 27% increase in income.

Trump at a Halloween party at Mar-a-Lago

Ordinary real estate follows market trends, while these resorts and golf courses fluctuate with Trump's schedule.

2 Eye-Catching Stock Trades

Although cryptocurrencies and real estate accounted for the vast majority of Trump's income last year, his every move in the stock market also came under the scrutiny of the U.S. media.

In 2025, Trump reported over 22,000 stock trades, averaging 87 trades per trading day.

In comparison, Trump conducted only 517 trades during his first term, while Biden made only 13 trades throughout his term. It seemed as if Trump's investment account suddenly switched to "high-frequency mode" upon his second return to the White House.

Trump's trading activity surged during his second term

But more noteworthy than the number of trades was the timing of Trump's trades—according to the Wall Street Journal's analysis, Trump's account engaged in intensive trading around significant policy announcements multiple times.

For example, in April last year, Trump announced tariffs on global trading partners, causing severe fluctuations in global stock markets, and subsequently, his investment account executed hundreds of stock trades over several days. A few days later, Trump suddenly posted on social media that "now is a good time to buy," and shortly after, he announced a delay in imposing tariffs on most countries, leading to a significant rebound in U.S. stocks.

Additionally, Trump's account purchased at least $82 million in corporate and municipal bonds from late August to early October last year, covering multiple industries, many of which clearly benefited from U.S. policy adjustments.

In response to external skepticism, the White House explained that these trades were executed by a professional investment team managing Trump's trust account, not directly by Trump himself. A few days ago, Trump also told reporters that he never inquires about the fund manager's operations, and his substantial profits are solely due to the stock market hitting new highs—"Everyone is making money; I can make money because I have a strong capital base and plenty of cash."

However, Trump clearly overlooked one thing.

After the Watergate scandal, to minimize the connection between public power and personal wealth, every president since has typically sold assets that could be affected by policy or placed assets under the management of a blind trust established by an independent third party, so they cannot intervene or know the specific holdings.

While Trump also established a trust, it is not managed by an independent third party but is overseen by family members, which has always been accompanied by controversies over conflicts of interest.

3 The Master of Monetizing "Presidential Influence"

After reviewing the 927-page financial disclosure document, what people discussed the most was not how much Trump earned, but how he has almost turned the presidential identity into a business and maximized the conversion of presidential influence into commercial profits.

Some have complained that the White House is an office for other presidents, but for Trump, it is a brand operation center.

The most typical example is cryptocurrency.

During his first term, Trump criticized cryptocurrencies as "based on air" and a scam, but during his second term, he made a 180-degree turn, not only introducing a series of favorable policies for the crypto industry but also publicly stating "we want to make America the crypto capital," and hosted a group of investors holding the most $TRUMP tokens at the White House.

Trump attending the signing ceremony for cryptocurrency legislation

Moreover, not only does Trump want to make money, but his whole family is also eager to participate. After World Liberty Financial was established, Trump took on the role of "Chief Cryptocurrency Advocate," while his two sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, served as "Web3 Ambassadors," and his youngest son Barron was titled "DeFi Visionary"; within 48 hours of the $TRUMP launch, First Lady Melania also launched her own meme coin, $MELANIA.

Reuters recently estimated that since Trump's return to the White House in 2025, the Trump family has profited at least $2.3 billion from cryptocurrency-related projects.

Real estate follows a similar logic.

Reports indicate that the initial membership fee for Mar-a-Lago Club was about $20,000, but after the 2016 election, membership fees skyrocketed from $100,000, $200,000, to now $700,000, $1 million... The exorbitant membership slots are widely advertised as "opportunities for face-to-face communication with Trump," and have been widely criticized as a way to sell political connections.

The introduction page for Mar-a-Lago Club states

Access to the "Trump World" system

During Trump's visit to Scotland in 2025, he also specifically went to cut the ribbon at his newly opened golf course, although he was criticized for using presidential travel to promote private enterprises, Trump probably didn't care, as this project brought him over $40 million in income last year.

In stocks, Trump also spares no effort in endorsing the stocks he purchased.

The Financial Times pointed out that Trump's buying appears to mechanically follow market indices, but in reality, he holds a large number of stocks significantly affected by public policy.

For instance, Trump purchased $67 million worth of Nvidia stock, and since taking office, he has mentioned Nvidia publicly at least 31 times and on social media 19 times.

The timing of Trump's buying and selling Nvidia stocks

Compared to the times he mentioned Nvidia publicly and on social media

Trump's series of money-making tactics seems like a public experiment on the boundaries of modern political commercialization. Whether it is business innovation or a conflict of interest, American public opinion has been in heated debate.

For supporters, this is a legendary story of a successful businessman, while for critics, it means the presidential position is becoming a commercial asset that can be continuously monetized.

Fox, a former acting director of the Office of Government Ethics, stated that every president since the Watergate scandal has managed their finances as if dealing with conflicts of interest, but Trump completely ignores these guidelines, proving more than anyone else that it is time for further ethical reforms.

The Trump Organization responded that this nearly thousand-page financial disclosure report precisely demonstrates that the president has conducted the most comprehensive and transparent financial disclosure in history.

Ultimately, whether this $2.2 billion is considered legally earned money may still require an answer from U.S. law, but the debate it has sparked about how far public power and private business should maintain distance is likely to enter a new phase.

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