Former US President Donald Trump's social media platform Truth Social has taken Wall Street by storm since going public. The valuation of Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, has skyrocketed to $8 billion based on investor enthusiasm.
The SPAC merger that took Trump's company public saw its shares rise over 15% on its first day of trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange. This gave the platform the ticker symbol “DJT” and allowed everyday investors to purchase stock in the company for the first time.
The surge in the share price has provided a massive boost to Donald Trump's personal net worth. According to estimates, Trump has seen his wealth grow by billions and has now crossed the threshold to join the prestigious list of world's 500 richest individuals. While legal battles may restrict him from selling stocks currently, maintaining the momentum in stock value would make Trump a multi-billionaire in the future.
Despite facing challenges since its launch, Truth Social has managed to attract millions of users interested in an alternative to platforms like Twitter that have banned Trump. The company claims to champion free speech online and taking on “big tech censors”. While volatility stalled trading at one point, the platform's debut has been a resounding success amongst pro-Trump investors looking to back the former president's new venture.
With Truth Social now a publicly traded firm, it will be looking to extend its user base while fighting legal fights over content moderation policies. Whether it can truly compete with mainstream platforms or remains a niche service for Trump supporters remains to be seen. But one thing is for certain – Donald Trump is smiling all the way to the bank thanks to the monumental Wall Street reception of his social media creation.
