Martin Shkreli, colloquially known as “Pharma Bro,” claims that Barron Trump, the 18-year-old son of former President Donald Trump, initiated the TrumpCoin DJT/USD token with his father’s consent and holds the private keys to its smart contract address.
What Happened: Shkreli, who spent over six years in prison for securities fraud, revealed that Barron Trump approached him in April to launch the Solana SOL/USD based token, which is now valued at $158 million, according to Dextools data.
However, Barron Trump and his representatives have not yet made any public comments on this matter.
During an X Spaces session hosted by Mario Nawfal on Wednesday, Shkreli stated he only provided advice to Barron Trump and did not directly involve himself in deploying the token.
He said, “I taught someone how to make a contract, and they pushed the button, not me. Keys are with Trump, not me.”
Shkreli further claimed that cryptocurrency influencer “Ansem” was involved in the project and that Trump was the true creator of DJT.
He alleged that a group of around 10 people, including himself, participated in the token launch. "I did not act alone," he added.
Additionally, Shkreli mentioned that Trump had been in contact with the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken to discuss potentially listing DJT.
Shkreli insisted that Donald Trump not only knew about the DJT token but also “approved it,” stating, "I have receipts of Barron saying his dad approved it."
To support his claims, Shkreli brought a teenager known as “Mongolian Prince” into the X Spaces session.
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The teenager, who has fewer than 500 X followers, confirmed in a shy manner that Barron made the token and holds the private keys.
He added, “[Barron] wanted to do something special, something significant, and we all wanted to help him with that.”
Mongolian Prince also mentioned a recent meeting with Trump in Florida, describing how Barron showed his Solana-based Phantom wallet to his father before the DJT token launch, who reportedly responded with laughter.
Shkreli’s statements came a day after blockchain sleuth ZachXBT won a $150,000 award from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence for allegedly identifying Shkreli as the creator of the DJT token.
In response, Adam Cochran, a partner at venture capital firm Cinneamhain Ventures, accused Shkreli of "trying to throw Barron under the bus" to clear his own name.
Why It Matters: The revelations have sparked mixed reactions.
While some audience members in the X Spaces session found Shkreli’s version of events plausible, others doubted the likelihood of Trump risking such controversy during an election year.
Shkreli was convicted in federal court on two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy in 2017. He served nearly seven years in prison and paid over $70 million in fines.
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This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Image created using artificial intelligence with Midjourney.
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