Donald Trump to make $3.4bn if shareholders back plan to float Trump Media

Donald Trump’s wealth is set to increase by about $3.4bn (£2.7bn) if a shareholder vote on Friday paves the way for the float of his Trump Media business.

The former US president is preparing to list Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates the Truth Social tech platform, via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or Spac.

The Spac, called Digital World Acquisition, has scheduled a vote on the merger with Trump Media for Friday. However, there are complications around the planned vote after Digital World sued sponsor ARC Global Investments, which is trying to delay the deal, to back the merger.

If the merger goes ahead and Trump Media goes public as soon as next week, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee would not be able to cash in any of his potential paper wealth immediately. The merger document contains a provision that blocks major shareholders from selling stock for six months.

Trump’s finances are under pressure as he prepares to contest the US presidency with the incumbent, Joe Biden, for a second time. Last month Trump was formally ordered by a New York judge to pay $454m following a civil fraud case, in which the former president was found to have manipulated the value of his properties to obtain advantageous loan and insurance rates.

Trump has described the case as a “witch-hunt”, has denied all wrongdoing and intends to appeal against the ruling. Monday is also the deadline for him to obtain a bond against his assets guaranteeing payment of the $454m. However, this week his lawyers said it was “a practical impossibility” to obtain the bond after 30 surety companies turned him down.

Spacs raise money via a stock market flotation and then buy or merge with an existing company – in this