In its filing with the #SEC on Tuesday, #GDCultureGroup confirmed its plans to buy $TRUMP — but again omitted any information about the entity that is financing the purchase.
Historically, the British Virgin Islands has been a favorite jurisdiction for overseas investors seeking to maintain confidentiality, because it is easy to set up a shell company there.
…The stmnt by #GDCultureGroup did not mention any policy objectives. Xiaojian Wang, the chief exec, said the company was embracing “industrial transformation” through #cryptocurrencies & moving to “strengthen our financial foundation.”
It was unclear how exactly GD Culture Group had secured the funding to buy hundreds of millions of dollars of #crypto. In its stmnt, the company did not reveal any info about the entity in the British Virgin Islands that agreed to purchase its stock.
…any purchase by #GDCultureGroup would be the first known example of a #China-linked firm buying #Trump’s #memecoin. In its financial disclosures, the company has noted that its subsidiary, Shanghai Xianzhui, might be influenced by demands from the Chinese govt, though that is not unusual wording for a Chinese company.
“The Chinese government may intervene or influence its operations at any time,” the company said in an annual report in March.
“Make no mistake. These foreign entities & governments obviously want to curry favor with the president,” said former Representative Charles Dent, a Pennsylvania Republican who was the chairman of the House #Ethics Cmte. “This is completely out of bounds & raises all sorts of ethical, legal & constitutional issues that must be addressed.”
#Trump #GDCultureGroup #law #emoluments #crypto #securities #POTUS4sale
In its statement, #GDCultureGroup, which is traded on the Nasdaq, said it would spend $300 million on a stockpile of #Bitcoin & $TRUMP, using proceeds from a #stock sale to an unnamed entity in the British Virgin Islands, a popular tax haven. It confirmed that investment plan in a #securities filing late Tues.
But on Monday, #GDCultureGroup became the latest business with foreign ties to seize on #Trump’s #crypto venture, which channels profits directly to the Trump family & has generated conflicts of interest that have alarmed #ethics experts. (#Memecoins like $TRUMP are a type of #cryptocurrency based on an online joke or celebrity mascot & have traditionally not had any utility beyond speculation.)
A struggling technology company that has ties to #China & relies on TikTok made an unusual announcement this week. It had secured funding to buy as much as $300 million of $TRUMP, the so-called #memecoin marketed by #Trump.
#GDCultureGroup, a publicly traded firm with a Chinese subsidiary, has only 8 employees, its public filings show, & recorded zero revenue last year from an e-commerce business it operates on TikTok, the Chinese-owned video-sharing app.
Nonilex