Legal costs and higher operational expenses chipped away at Trump Media and Technology Group’s ability to turn a profit during the second quarter (Q2) of the year, according to financial reports released by the company on Friday.
During the three-month period that ended June 30, Trump Media earned around $900,000 in revenue and increased the value of its overall assets to $3.1 billion. Despite this, Trump Media recorded a net loss of $20 million, of which $15 million was directly attributed to legal expenses, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Most of the legal expenses were attributed to Trump Media’s merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, last year. The company said it was seeking to recover legal damages from the parties who delayed the merger through their litigation.
Around 50 institutional investors contributed a collective $2.4 billion through a private placement offering, Trump Media said. The money allowed Trump Media to purchase around $2 billion in Bitcoin and related securities, the company affirmed.
Positive cash flow related to the company’s operations reached $2.3 million, Trump Media said. The $20 million loss during Q2 was primarily related to non-cash expenses related to its stock-based compensation, depreciation, amortization and income taxes, which was partially offset by investment income.
The company continues to expand its digital platforms aggressively, notably through its Truth Social and Truth Plus video streaming services. In the second quarter, Truth Plus saw a global rollout, significantly expanding availability worldwide. Newsmax, the right-of-center political affairs channel, was one of the broadcast launch partners for Truth Plus, distributing its core channel and others through the service.
Additionally, Trump Media announced plans to introduce the Patriot Package, a subscription model linking its social and streaming platforms with added features, such as automatic account verification, extended posting capabilities, and access to exclusive content.
“In a very short time, Trump Media has reopened the Internet for free speech, created an uncancellable social media platform and video streaming platform, expanded both platforms worldwide, amassed one of the biggest Bitcoin treasuries of any public company, and now, we have our first quarter of positive operating cash flow, despite having gone public just last year,” Devin Nunes, the Chief Executive Officer of Trump Media & Technology Group, said in a statement.
Nunes continued: “We aim to continually increase both the quality and quantity of our products and services as we pursue a wide array of options, including acquiring crown jewel assets through mergers and acquisitions, to strengthen and extend our position in the America First economy.”
