INV-016 · Money & ethics · Conflicts of interest
Envoy Witkoff, World Liberty and UAE chips
Stage 2 of 5: Inquiry · Letters and records requests · Last development 31 Jan 2026
Witkoff co-founded World Liberty Financial with the Trump family. A UAE government-backed firm put $2 billion into its stablecoin while Witkoff, as envoy, reportedly pushed an AI chip export deal for the UAE. No ethics official has signed off on his disclosure forms, according to the senators. The Wall Street Journal reported that a firm backed by UAE security adviser Sheikh Tahnoon bought 49% of World Liberty for $500M four days before the inauguration, with $187M going to Trump family entities.
- People
- Steve Witkoff, World Liberty Financial
- Agencies
- State Dept, Commerce Dept
- Reviewed by
- Senate Democrats, Office of Government Ethics (asked)
Money involved
- $187 million To Trump family entities from the UAE-backed WLF stake (Money to the president, his family or officials) [2]
Timeline
The Wall Street Journal reports the previously undisclosed Tahnoon-backed WLF stake; G42 executives reportedly helped manage Aryam and took WLF board seats. [3]
Sens. Warren and Murphy ask the White House and the Office of Government Ethics whether Witkoff fully divested and why his forms are unsigned. Deadline: 1 Dec 2025. [1]
The US approves sales to G42 of computing power equivalent to 35,000 Nvidia GB300 processors. [3]
Sens. Warren and Slotkin ask the Commerce and State inspectors general and the Office of Government Ethics to investigate, citing reports that Witkoff and David Sacks 'played key roles' in relaxing chip-export restrictions to the UAE while having undisclosed financial ties linked to USD1. [5]
The White House announces a US-UAE partnership on a 5-gigawatt AI campus in Abu Dhabi to be built by G42, during Trump's visit to the UAE; reports describe the administration allowing UAE access to hundreds of thousands of advanced chips a year, about two weeks after the USD1 disclosure. [4]
WLF's USD1 stablecoin is disclosed as the payment method for Abu Dhabi fund MGX's $2 billion investment in Binance. [7]
Four days before the inauguration, emissaries of Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan sign a deal with Eric Trump for Abu Dhabi entity Aryam Investment 1 to buy 49% of WLF for $500 million, according to the Wall Street Journal. Of a $250 million first payment, $187 million reportedly went to Trump family entities and at least $31 million to Witkoff family entities; the remaining $250 million was due by 2025-07-15. The deal was not publicly disclosed. [2]
Responses
- White House (earlier): Said Witkoff was "still in the process of divesting"; World Liberty had said he was "fully divesting". [1]
- World Liberty Financial: A spokesman said the investment was meant to keep the company growing and that Trump and Witkoff were not involved in the deal. [2]
- White House: A spokesperson said Trump's assets are held in a trust managed by his children; spokespeople said the deal did not influence US policy. [2]
- White House and World Liberty Financial: In September 2025, spokespeople denied any connection between the USD1/MGX deal and the UAE chips decision, according to the New York Times as reported by The Block. [6]
Who is acting on it
- Asked for an investigation Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI): Asked the Commerce and State inspectors general and OGE to investigate the chip deal (24 Sep 2025, No reply or result recorded yet)
- Letter Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT): Asked whether Witkoff fully divested and why his forms are unsigned (18 Nov 2025, No reply or result recorded yet)
Sources
Cite this case
Public Trust Tracker. "Envoy Witkoff, World Liberty and UAE chips" (INV-016). Last updated 31 Jan 2026. https://publictrusttracker.org/case/inv-016-envoy-witkoff-world-liberty-and-uae-chips/
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