CryptoSlate reported that Trump Media & Technology Group, Crypto.com and Yorkville Acquisition Corp. announced on Friday (7) the cancellation of the plan to create Trump Media Group CRO Strategy, a digital treasury company valued at US$ 6.42 billion. The venture would have been structured around the accumulation of Crypto.com's Cronos (CRO) token.
The companies justified the decision with market conditions and changes in commercial priorities and in the priorities of the parties involved. The planned financing package included US$ 1 billion in CRO, US$ 200 million in cash, US$ 220 million from the mandatory exercise of warrants, and a US$ 5 billion credit line extended by a Yorkville affiliate.
The announcement sent CRO's price down 6% to US$ 0.05009, its lowest level since 2023. Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek said that after analyzing the proposals for ETFs and for a digital treasury asset, the conclusion was that moving forward under current market conditions makes no sense. He said the company will pursue other ETF opportunities and better ways to allocate the funds.
Ethical scrutiny
The withdrawal comes amid mounting pressure on President Donald Trump's cryptocurrency businesses. In 2025, Trump declared more than US$ 1.4 billion in income from his crypto ventures, including about US$ 800 million tied to World Liberty Financial and US$ 635 million in sales of the Trump memecoin. The Trump family has already generated at least US$ 2.3 billion from crypto-related projects since returning to the White House in 2025.
Those gains now weigh on negotiations over the CLARITY Act, a Senate bill that aims to create a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets. Democratic senators are conditioning their support on the inclusion of stricter ethical restrictions for political officials with business interests in the sector. The White House and lawmakers are discussing a bipartisan proposal that would require the president to divest from crypto companies, but the text has not been finalized.
The White House rejects the conflict accusations. In June, a spokesperson said that neither Trump nor his family had conflicts of interest and that the administration's crypto policies aim to advance American leadership in the sector.
The Crypto.com deal had already raised conflict questions. The exchange donated US$ 1 million to Trump's inauguration and US$ 10 million to MAGA Inc., a pro-Trump super PAC, after the 2024 election victory. The SEC closed an investigation into the exchange in March 2025. Crypto.com denied any connection between its political activity and the regulator's decision.
Beyond the canceled venture, Trump Media had a 2025 agreement to buy about US$ 105 million in CRO for its balance sheet, while Crypto.com would buy US$ 50 million in Trump Media shares and provide wallet infrastructure for a rewards program on Truth Social and Truth+. The end of the Trump Media Group CRO Strategy removes one of the largest commercial links between the president's media company and the crypto sector, but the conflict-of-interest debate remains open in Congress.
