Justin Sun’s crypto group Tron is preparing to go public in the U.S. through a reverse merger with SRM Entertainment. This deal is being orchestrated by Dominari Securities, according to a Financial Times report.
Dominari Securities is a New York-based boutique investment bank with ties to Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr.
A reverse merger allows a private company to become publicly traded by merging with an existing public company, often providing a faster path to public markets than a traditional initial public offering (IPO). This transaction will involve Tron injecting up to $210 million of token assets into the new company, significantly boosting its holdings.
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The new venture will buy and hold the Tron token, mimicking the tactics of Strategy — formerly MicroStrategy — which founder Michael Saylor has turned into a leveraged bitcoin vehicle. The company will be called Tron Inc., and Eric Trump is expected to take up a role there. However, Eric Trump mentioned via X, that he has no “public involvement” in the project.
In 2023, Tron, and two other companies owned by Sun were charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the U.S. markets regulator, over allegations that they had sold unregistered securities and manipulated the market. In February, Sun and the SEC filed a court motion to pause the lawsuit, after President Donald Trump indicated an inclination towards a lighter-touch regulatory approach for the crypto industry.
Since then, Trump had gone on to tighten his relationship with the Trump family. In May, Sun and the other 24 top holders of the $Trump meme coin attended a banquet with the president at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia. Sun also invested $75 million in World Liberty Financial, a Trump family crypto company from which the president has derived income of $57 million.
These deals, involving an entity where Trump benefits financially, have raised concerns among political opponents and ethics experts over conflicts of interest. The president has said he put his business interests in a trust managed by his children to avoid conflicts of interest.
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Sun — who was born in China, and has the citizenship of St Kitts and Nevis — has long been regarded as a relatively controversial figure within the crypto industry. He has gathered a reputation for attention-grabbing stunts, including paying $6.2 million last year for a banana taped to the wall, which he ate in front of the world’s media.
SRM also designs and sells custom merchandise such as toys and souvenirs. Its shares jumped more than 300% on Monday, reaching as high as $6.70, compared with Friday’s close of $1.45.