Is there insider trading again? Trading volume of two stocks surged before the announcement of the Trump family's appointments

Trump family's mysterious surge before involvement: Small stock trading anomalies "confirm" insider trading?

According to media reports, four weeks before drone manufacturer Unusual Machines announced the hiring of Donald Trump Jr. on November 27 last year, its stock price nearly tripled.

Additionally, on February 11 this year, Dominari Holdings, a securities and fintech group headquartered in Trump Tower, New York, saw its stock price soar an astonishing 580% in the six weeks prior to announcing that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump would join its advisory board.

The scale of these trading anomalies is also hard to ignore.

Market data shows that Unusual Machines (with a market capitalization of about $90 million) had an average daily trading volume of 290,000 shares in the four weeks before the announcement, far exceeding the 93,000 shares from March to October 2024. Dominari (with a market capitalization of about $60 million) experienced an even more remarkable increase in trading volume, surging from 11,700 shares from March to December 2024 to 1.2 million shares.

Currently, although the stock prices of both companies are below the levels prior to the public announcement of the Trump family's appointments, they are still higher than a year ago.

Early acquisition of equity triggers "unusual" anomalies

Regulatory filings show that the Trump brothers had already acquired a significant amount of shares in these companies before the announcement.

Dominari's disclosure documents indicate that the two sons of Trump each received 966,000 shares of stock, representing 6.7% of the company's equity. Meanwhile, Unusual Machines' documents from November show that Trump's younger son holds 200,000 shares issued under a "restricted stock unit agreement and advisory agreement," in addition to purchasing 131,000 shares.

Unusual Machines stated that information regarding Trump's younger son's planned involvement was known only to three senior officials, the board, and legal advisors. The company claimed, "There is no reason to believe that any of these individuals violated any laws or fiduciary duties," and stated that it was "unaware of any reasons for any investors to purchase its stock during this period."

It is worth mentioning that Unusual Machines' initial public offering last year was underwritten by Dominari, which did not respond to requests for comment.

Adam Pritchard, a law professor at the University of Michigan, believes that the stock anomalies are "clearly unusual." However, he added:

"This does not necessarily mean it is insider trading. As a board advisor, Donald Trump Jr. is not necessarily obligated to keep information confidential—this is different from the usual situation for board directors."

Trump's camp has been suspected of insider trading or market manipulation multiple times

This is not the first time Trump's camp has raised suspicions due to market anomalies.

In October 2021, when Donald Trump Jr. announced that Trump Media & Technology Group, which he majority owns and operates the social media site Truth Social, planned to merge with the shell company Digital World Acquisition Corp, Trading volume surged the night before the announcement, raising regulatory concerns.

This year, during the sensitive period of announcing the suspension of tariff policies, Trump's call to "buy" in a post also sparked controversy.

According to The New York Times, at 9:37 AM on the 9th, Trump posted a message in all capital letters on social media: "This is a great time to buy!!! DJT." Just about 4 hours later, he announced that he would implement a 90-day suspension of tariffs on certain countries, according to Shanghai Securities Journal.

According to congressional disclosure documents, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has close ties to Trump, made 21 stock purchases over two consecutive days from April 8 to 9, with each transaction amounting between $1,001 and $15,000, totaling between $21,000 and $315,000.

Greene also sold $50,000 to $100,000 in U.S. Treasury bonds on April 8, successfully avoiding market volatility. Prior to Trump's announcement of "reciprocal tariffs" on April 2, she had made a single purchase of up to $500,000 in Treasury bonds.

Additionally, Republican Congressman Rob Bresnahan, California Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna, former House Speaker Pelosi and her husband are also suspected of "timing their investments," raising significant concerns among Democratic lawmakers about "market manipulation" and "insider trading."