Ring of $2 billion: Circle shareholder takes Trump’s USD1 deal to court

Circle Internet Financial shareholder J. Benjamin Greenberg sued US President Donald Trump, his family’s World Liberty Financial, affiliate entities and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff in a Thursday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia over a $2 billion deal involving MGX, Binance and USD1.

The lawsuit alleges that Trump, Witkoff and World Liberty created a pathway for foreign governments to funnel money through the Trump family crypto company’s USD1 stablecoin, harming Circle and its USDC stablecoin. Greenberg, who reported holding 10,000 ordinary shares of Circle, called the alleged conduct “brazen corruption,” saying it leaves Circle “unable to compete” in the stablecoin market with its USDC.

MGX, an Abu Dhabi entity tied to the United Arab Emirates royalty, invested $2 billion into cryptocurrency exchange Binance using USD1 in 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported in February that another investment vehicle backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed to purchase a 49% stake in World Liberty for $500 million. Greenberg alleged: “By accepting hundreds of millions of dollars from a foreign government, the President and his companies have diverted business from [Circle].”

He petitioned the court to declare that Trump violated the US Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause through the crypto deals and sought injunctions preventing the president and Witkoff from pursuing similar financial interests without Congress’ consent. His requested relief states: “Plaintiff asks this Court to declare the President’s corrupt acts a violation of the Constitution, to enjoin the brazen corruption alleged below, to order an accounting of the billions in payments from foreign states to the President and his businesses, to require the companies holding them to disgorge the emoluments the President accepted through them, and for compensatory and punitive damages.”

Zach Witkoff, the son of the Witkoff named in the lawsuit, is a World Liberty co-founder, while Trump and his three sons are co-founders of the crypto venture. A Circle spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the company “did not initiate, direct, authorize, or participate in the filing,” and declined to comment on the pending litigation. Spokespeople for World Liberty and the White House did not respond to requests for comments on the lawsuit.

Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, reported that crypto ventures tied to Trump and his family netted him $1.4 billion in 2025 while costing investors about $4.7 billion. The filing comes as Democrats use “corruption” messaging as midterm elections approach.