Former President Donald Trump has received more favorable financial news following a decisive appellate court ruling in his fraud trial. On Monday morning, a New York court of appeals lowered the bail required for the former president to cover the costs of his civil fraud trial in the state, reducing the amount from an overwhelming $454 million to a substantially lesser $175 million.
Bolstering Trump’s position, shares in Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC), the special purpose acquisition company set to take Trump Media & Technology Group public through a merger, saw a remarkable surge today. DWAC’s shares increased by upwards of 21% during Monday’s trading session. The boost reflects investor confidence following the court’s decision according to Fox Business.
The merger is significant for Trump, valuing his stake in Truth Social at approximately $3.3 billion. The platform has been marketed as a haven for conservative voices, particularly those who feel marginalized or censored by mainstream social media policies.
Mondays’s ruling arrived just in time, as New York Attorney General Letitia James announced her intentions to initiate the seizure of assets within the Trump empire to satisfy the original judgment. Trump, voicing concerns over the financial strain imposed by the initial amount, previously stated that meeting the original bail would necessitate a “fire sale” of several properties under his name.
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“The lawfare that they’re doing is incredible,” Trump said later on Monday. “Every single one of them is run by Biden and his thugs. The only way they think they can get elected. And I think so far it’s backfiring because the people of this country understand it. It’s backfiring. But they’re being run and they’re running all of these different cases”
The decision by the New York Court of Appeals remains a critical juncture in Trump’s ongoing legal and financial saga. The decision was made by a five-judge panel, showing the unanimous acknowledgment for the need of a revision in the initial bail amount.
“So ridiculous, the cases, every one of them is ridiculous,” the 2024 frontrunner continued. “This is all weaponization of DOJ and FBI. They raided my house in violation on a thing called the Fourth Amendment. [You’re] not allowed to do that. They raided my house in Florida, Mar-a-Lago. No notice, no nothing. They raided it.”
Trump concluded, “I can’t believe it. Nobody can believe it. And we’ll see how that all works out in the end. But it’s illegal what they’re doing. It’s criminal what they’re doing and it’s never been done before.”
The decision is a second setback following an $84 million judgment in the E. Jean Carroll civil trial, as Trump continues to face four ongoing criminal trials, two of which have been brought by the Justice Department under President Biden.
Trump now has 10 days to come up with the $175 million required to post his bond.