Trump Media &amp; Technology Group has swung to a $409.7 million quarterly profit, largely thanks to Bitcoin. Investors who bought on Trump Media's first day of trading on Nasdaq, March 26, 2024, have little to show for it.
The Truth Social parent reported <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/fr/news-release/2026/11/09/3398959/0/en/trump-media-technology-group-reports-third-quarter-2026-results.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">net income of $409.7 million</a> for the third quarter, compared with a $54.8 million loss a year earlier.
As per the <a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1849635/000143774926035884/djt20260930_10q.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">SEC filing</a>, the revenue was just $2.97 million.
<h2 id="a-1-000-bet-is-now-worth-about-72">A $1,000 bet is now worth about $72</h2>
As per a UPI <a href="https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2024/03/26/donald-trump-media-company-stock-rises-by-half-on-first-day-of-trading/6461711478039/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">report</a>, Trump Media shares closed their first day of trading on Nasdaq on March 26, 2024, at $57.99.
A $1,000 investment that day would have bought about 17.24 shares. At Tuesday's <a href="https://stockanalysis.com/stocks/DJT/history/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">price</a> of about $4.20, those shares would be worth roughly $72, a loss of nearly 93%.
The stock is down 94.7% from its 2024 peak of $79.38 and has lost nearly 70% this year.
It plunged 24.5% on Nov. 4 after the midterm elections. Outside shareholders have lost more than $2.2 billion, according to a Reuters <a href="https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/trump-medias-investors-lost-22-billion-while-trump-holds-460-million-stake-5007253" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">estimate</a> that the company disputes.
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/musk-warned-america-will-go-1000-bankrupt-now-u-s-debt-tops-40-trillion-and-counting" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Musk warned America will go 1,000% bankrupt. Now U.S. debt tops $40 trillion and counting</a>
<h2 id="bitcoin-drove-the-profit-and-now-it-s-falling">Bitcoin drove the profit, and now it’s falling</h2>
Most of the profit came from crypto, not Truth Social.
As per the filing, Trump Media booked $496.1 million in realized and unrealized gains, including $378.1 million on digital assets and pledged coins. Much of that gain was on paper rather than cash from sales.
The company held about 15,649 BTC at the end of September, including roughly 11,385 coins pledged to a yield program.
The company also held 756.1 million Cronos tokens with a fair value of $50.3 million at the end of September, less than half their $113.9 million cost basis.
That rally has since reversed. Bitcoin was trading near $73,804 on Nov. 11, about 12% below its quarter-end level.
<h2 id="paper-gains-vs-real-cash-in-the-bank">Paper gains vs. real cash in the bank</h2>
The company itself says the bulk of its $409.7 million quarterly profit came from non-cash items. In plain terms, most of it is a paper gain: profit that exists because the price of Bitcoin rose, not cash collected from selling.
The filing's nine-month breakdown shows how thin the cash gains are. Of the $17.5 million net gain on digital assets and pledged coins this year, $210.7 million was unrealized, or paper, gains, offset by $193.2 million in losses from the derecognition and reacquisition of digital assets.
Strip out the crypto swings and the core business is still losing money. Trump Media posted an adjusted EBITDA loss of $12.3 million for the quarter and burned $28.4 million of cash in operating activities over the first nine months, largely on legal bills.
Revenue from Truth Social, Truth+ and Truth.Fi was just $2.97 million for the quarter, though up 205% from a year earlier. The company held $182.3 million in cash and equivalents as of Sept. 30, plus $31.0 million in restricted cash and $211.1 million in short-term investments.
For day-one shareholders sitting on a 93% loss, the distinction matters: a paper profit can shrink as fast as it appeared if Bitcoin keeps falling, while the business underneath is not yet generating cash.
<h2 id="a-profitable-quarter">A profitable quarter</h2>
The headline profit does not erase the year's losses. For the first nine months of 2026, Trump Media lost $234.2 million, more than double the $106.6 million loss a year earlier, after a $120.0 million investment loss over the period.
There are bright spots. Legal fees fell to $2.4 million in the quarter from $20.3 million a year earlier now that legacy legal matters are resolved, and revenue growth came mostly from $1.8 million in subscriptions for Truth API, the company's first data-licensing product launched Aug. 1, and Truth+, plus $0.2 million in management fees from Truth.Fi ETF offerings.
But revenue remains concentrated: a single advertising platform accounted for 31% of total revenue in the first nine months of the year.
Pressure is building elsewhere too.
Holders of $1 billion in convertible notes can demand repayment on Nov. 30, and shareholders vote on a $6 billion <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/trump-media-tae-technologies-combine-6-billion-deal-2025-12-18/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">merger</a> with TAE Technologies on Dec. 14, 2026. The notes are backed by 4,260.73 bitcoin, worth $356.1 million, pledged as collateral until they mature in May 2028. Interest expense on the debt hit $11.9 million in the quarter, more than the $7.2 million the company earned in interest income. Trump Media is also financing its merger partner: TAE drew the remaining $100 million available under its convertible promissory note in October, taking the total to $200 million.
Last week, wallets linked to Trump Media moved about 4,259 Bitcoin, worth approximately $342 million, to Crypto.com, according to Arkham <a href="https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2026/11/05/trump-media-moves-usd434-million-in-bitcoin-to-crypto-com-blockchain-data-show" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">data</a>.
The transfer has revived questions over whether the company is trimming its crypto treasury.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments are highly volatile and risky. Always conduct your own research before making any investment decisions.
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/binance-founder-issues-chilling-warning-after-record-crypto-heist" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Binance founder issues chilling warning after record crypto heist</a>

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