Trump Crypto Firm Received $100M From Investor Under UK Probe

A firm tied to President Donald Trump and his three sons collected up to 75 million dollars from a 100 million dollar investment made by a United Arab Emirates based crypto fund whose founder is under active investigation for money laundering in Britain. The transaction through World Liberty Financial came to light in reporting by The New York Times that details the background of investor Guren Bobby Zhou and the limited scrutiny applied to his sudden infusion of cash.

Zhou runs the Aqua 1 Foundation which purchased the digital tokens in June 2025. World Liberty policy directed the bulk of those funds to a company controlled by Trump and his sons Eric Donald and Barron as well as to the family of Steve Witkoff the administration special peace envoy. Zach Witkoff co founder of the venture and son of the envoy was photographed with Zhou in a luxury suite at the World Cup final in New Jersey last month.

Public records show Zhou previously operated a small crypto start up that collapsed and earlier ran a hardwood flooring business in Britain that failed. British authorities continue to investigate him for money laundering though the exact status of that probe has not been disclosed. Former associates described Zhou as a persuasive salesman yet expressed surprise that he could access sums large enough to buy 100 million dollars worth of anything after leaving London.

The Times noted that portions of Zhou troubled business history and the British investigation were publicly available at the time of the investment. World Liberty Financial made no statement clarifying what if any background checks were performed on Aqua 1 or Zhou. The company has positioned itself as a major player in digital assets tied to the Trump family with Zhou himself appearing briefly on an audio stream under the name Mr Bobby to praise the venture.

Crypto transactions allow buyers to move large amounts with greater anonymity than traditional banking channels. The report highlights how that feature enabled an individual with red flags to direct substantial sums toward the president family and close associates. No prior administration norms would have tolerated a foreign windfall of this scale without intense congressional or regulatory review yet the transaction drew little public attention until months later.

Zhou kept his role quiet after the purchase aside from that brief public comment. The money has already been distributed according to World Liberty rules benefiting the Trump sons directly and flowing to the Witkoff family as well. Questions remain about the source of Zhou funds and why a man whose businesses had collapsed was suddenly able to commit such resources to a politically connected crypto project.

The episode underscores the minimal barriers that exist when anonymous digital currency meets a venture closely linked to the sitting president. British investigators have not commented on whether the Trump related payment factors into their ongoing case.