The Trump family is facing mounting scrutiny over their extensive global business operations during Donald Trump's presidency, with ethics experts warning that their dealmaking is setting dangerous precedents for corruption worldwide.
Global Business Expansion Under Presidential Shadow
Since Donald Trump's re-election a year ago, his sons Donald Jr and Eric have embarked on an aggressive international business campaign that spans multiple continents and industries. The brothers, who formally oversee the family business empire, have secured approvals for new golf courses, skyscrapers, and luxury developments while their father wields presidential power.
Despite Eric Trump's insistence that there exists a "huge wall" between their business activities and the White House, critics argue the family is operating what amounts to a "pay to play" system. Kristofer Harrison, a former senior foreign policy official under President George W Bush who now leads the anti-corruption Dekleptocracy Project, warned that "Trump has made authoritarians' wildest dreams come true."
Serbian Pressure and Vietnamese Evictions
In Serbia, the Trump family's planned $500 million Belgrade Tower project has triggered concerning interventions by state security services. Estela Radonjic Zivkov, deputy head of Serbia's historical protection institute, received visits from security agents warning her not to challenge the demolition of a culturally significant site for the Trump development.
The situation escalated when organised crime prosecutor Mladen Nenadić began investigating forged paperwork that cancelled the site's protected status. The investigation implicated senior allies of Serbia's authoritarian leader Aleksandar Vučić, who had previously hosted Donald Trump Jr for what he described as a "cordial conversation about bilateral relations."
Meanwhile in Vietnam, the Trumps secured approval for a $1.5 billion golf resort in just three months - a process that normally takes years. Internal documents revealed Vietnamese officials feared that delaying the project could "negatively affect Vietnam's relations with the US" under President Trump.
Villagers facing eviction for the project receive minimal compensation of just $12 per square meter, while Trump himself received an immediate $5 million licensing fee according to presidential filings.
Cryptocurrency Windfall and Questionable Pardons
The Trump family's business interests have dramatically shifted toward cryptocurrency, with Reuters calculating their income surged from $51 million to $864 million in the first half of this year - a 17-fold increase with over 90% coming from digital assets.
Their company World Liberty Financial scored a major deal when Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, used their USD1 stablecoin for a $2 billion stake sale to UAE state-owned fund MGX. This single transaction could generate tens of millions annually for the Trumps through interest on reserves.
The situation grew more controversial when Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, who had served prison time for money laundering violations, received a presidential pardon in October. Zhao publicly thanked Trump for "upholding America's commitment to fairness," though Trump later claimed he had "no idea who he is."
Geopolitical Implications and Ethical Concerns
Ben Rhodes, who served as Barack Obama's deputy national security adviser, characterised the Trump family's approach as "nothing more than an old-fashioned grift tethered to a superpower." He warned that "corruption is now the norm in geopolitics" and expressed concern about "incalculable damage we are not seeing."
The pattern extends across multiple regions where the Trumps have business interests, including India, the Philippines, and South Korea - all countries facing Trump's tariff threats. In the Gulf region, where the family has long-standing business relationships, deals in Oman, Dubai, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia have coincided with significant policy decisions.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed concerns, stating that "the media's continued attempts to fabricate conflicts of interest are irresponsible" and insisting that neither the president nor his family "have ever engaged, or will ever engage, in conflicts of interest."
However, with no explicit quid pro quos proven but numerous instances of favourable treatment for Trump businesses coinciding with policy decisions, ethics experts fear the appearance of corruption alone could encourage similar behaviour by leaders worldwide.
