Trump SPAC social media company appears to miss first deadline
Former US president Donald Trump announced plans on October 20 to launch his own social networking platform called “TRUTH Social,” which is expected to begin its beta launch for “invited guests” next month.
Chris Delmas | AFP | Getty Images
WASHINGTON – Former President Donald Trump’s new social media company appears to have missed the November deadline it set to release an invitation-only beta version of “Truth Social,” its purported alternative to Twitter.
There have been no official announcements of a beta launch, nor have there been any sightings or images of an operational platform online.
At the same time, the price of the stock of Digital World Acquisition Corp. – the SPAC company that plans to merge with Trump’s social media firm – has dropped dramatically since its share price exploded when the deal was announced in late October.
Shares of DWAC, which had been trading as high as $175 per share right after the merger was disclosed, were trading at around $44 per share on Wednesday.
Late Wednesday afternoon, Reuters reported that Trump’s new company is trying to raise up to $1 billion by selling shares to hedge funds and family offices at a price higher than its initial pre-merger valuation of $10 a share.
“Trump Media is now looking to secure a so-called private investment in public equity (PIPE) that would value Digital World shares closer to their recent price, currently hovering around $40,” Reuters reported, citing anonymous sources.
The value of DWAC shares spiked during the final 10 minutes of trading Wednesday, jumping from $38.35 at 3:50 PM to a high of $51.02 just after 4:00 PM.
It is not unusual for tech companies to miss their own deadlines for product releases.
But the November launch date that Trump Media & Technology Group set for “Truth Social” was the first clear test of whether the company could deliver on its promises to investors who bought stock in DWAC.
Representatives of TMTG and DWAC did not immediately respond to questions about Truth Social from CNBC.
DWAC is a special purpose acquisition company, also known as a blank check company, which had an initial public offering in September that raised approximately $290 million.
On Oct. 20, DWAC announced that it plans to merge with Trump’s newly created TMTG, in a deal that valued the resultant firm at up to $1.7 billion.
In its own announcement, Trump Media & Technology Group said it “will soon be launching a social network, named ‘TRUTH Social.'”
“TRUTH Social is now available for PreOrder in the Apple App store. TRUTH Social plans to begin its Beta Launch for invited guests in November 2021,” the announcement said. “A nationwide rollout is expected in the first quarter of 2022. Those who are interested in joining TRUTH Social may now visit www.truthsocial.com to sign up for the invite list.”
But as of Wednesday, the Truth Social website was still just a landing site and a sign up form to be on the “waiting list.”
It does not appear to have changed since it was…
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