President-elect Donald Trump’s social media company, Trump Media & Technology (TMTG), reportedly filed a trademark application Monday (Nov. 18) for a service called TruthFi that would be a platform for cryptocurrency payments, financial custody services and trading in digital assets.
The application did not give many details about the project or when it might be launched, but it would mark a diversification of the company that is now largely focused on Truth Social, The New York Times reported Thursday (Nov. 21).
Washington-based trademark lawyer Josh Gerben said in the report that while companies can use a trademark application to reserve a name for as long as a few years, they usually file for one with intent to use it.
“In my experience, most of the time if a client is going to file an application, there is something going on,” Gerben said, per the report.
It was reported Monday (Nov. 18) that TMTG was in advanced talks to buy cryptocurrency trading venue Bakkt.
Bakkt was created and is owned by Intercontinental Exchange, the owner of the New York Stock Exchange. It was reported in June that Bakkt was working with a financial adviser to weigh strategic options.
TMTG has become one of the most actively traded stocks since Trump’s election victory, and it is now valued at $6 billion — enabling it to buy other companies.
Bitcoin and the global cryptocurrency market have hit record highs since the Nov. 5 election, as traders expect the crypto sector to benefit from Trump’s support of cryptocurrencies.
Trump pledged during the campaign to transform the United States into the “crypto capital of the planet,” while during the President Joe Biden administration, the crypto space suffered what industry players alleged to be “regulation by enforcement” under the Securities and Exchange Commission, PYMNTS reported Nov. 6.
The president-elect has promised to replace SEC Chair Gary Gensler with someone who would be more sympathetic to crypto, fueling speculation that the SEC would pivot to a more laissez-faire stance under a new chair.
It was reported Monday (Nov. 18) that Trump was meeting with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong to discuss the incoming administration’s personnel appointments.
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