[News Inside Companies] Trump-Created SNS 'Truth Social'

‘Truth Social,’ which will be listed and start trading on the US Nasdaq market from the 26th (local time), is a social networking service (SNS) established by former US President Donald Trump.

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After former President Trump was suspended from major SNS platforms such as Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) following the riot at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, he founded the media company TMTG and launched the Truth Social platform on February 21, 2022. This day also coincides with Presidents' Day (the third Monday of February each year), which honors former US presidents. Former President Trump expresses his political views on this platform.

The structure of Truth Social is similar to Twitter. Users post their thoughts or news in posts called ‘Truths’ and can share other users’ posts in real time on their own feed through ‘ReTruths.’ It positions itself as a ‘big tent platform’ where people can freely express their opinions without political discrimination. Under the value of ‘unlimited free expression without discrimination based on political ideology,’ it aims to be a place for conservatives as well as progressives and centrists. Commenting on posts and following users of interest are also similar to Twitter.

Although two years have passed since its launch, it has not achieved significant results. Since its release in February 2022, it recorded losses of $73 million (approximately 96 billion KRW) until the first half of last year, and nearly exhausted the $40 million raised through convertible bonds. The number of active users is also underwhelming. On the first day it was available on the Apple App Store (February 21, 2022), Truth Social attracted attention by ranking first in downloads, surpassing major SNS platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. However, users quickly declined, and as of February this year, it is estimated to have about 5 million users (according to research firm SimilarWeb). This is a scale that pales in comparison to TikTok’s over 2 billion and Facebook’s 3 billion users.

However, the stock price trend is the opposite of its performance. Although the ticker symbol has not yet changed, the stock price of Digital World Acquisition (DWAC), which legally became Truth Social stock from the 25th, closed at $49.95 on the New York Stock Exchange that day, soaring 35%. This is the highest price since January 15 ($50.56). The sharp rise in stock price is analyzed to be due to aggressive buying by Trump supporters, who make up the majority of DWAC shareholders.

From the 26th, DWAC will be traded on the Nasdaq market under the ticker symbol ‘DJT,’ named after former President Trump’s initials. US media outlets expect that with the listing of Truth Social, the valuation of Trump’s stake (about 60%) will soar to about $3 billion (approximately 4 trillion KRW) or more. According to this analysis, former President Trump’s total assets will increase to $6.4 billion, allowing him to join the ranks of the world’s top 500 richest people on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index for the first time.