Trump Media and Technology Group has ended its planned CRO treasury venture with Crypto.com and Yorkville Acquisition Corp., citing prevailing market conditions and shifting business and stakeholder priorities. Interim CEO Kevin McGurn told Axios that the company is refocusing on its core media operations, data licensing, and its forthcoming TAE merger as competition in the treasury space intensifies. The termination marks a pullback from the corporate crypto treasury trend, in which publicly traded companies have increasingly pursued digital-asset-based strategies to diversify balance sheets and generate yield through staking or similar mechanisms.

CRO Treasury Deal Terminated

Trump Media, Crypto.com, and Yorkville mutually agreed to terminate the Trump Media Group CRO Strategy. The proposed venture would have established a publicly traded company centered on Crypto.com's CRO token, with plans to generate returns through staking its holdings.

The companies also ended an associated services agreement and related digital asset products. However, Yorkville America's America First ETFs will continue operating under the Truth Social Funds brand.

Trump Media purchased $105 million worth of CRO in September 2025 through its partnership with Crypto.com. That arrangement also included plans to integrate CRO rewards into Trump Media products.

McGurn said competitive dynamics, rather than regulatory concerns, drove the decision to end the CRO venture.

Prediction Market Strategy Revised

Trump Media is also adjusting its approach to prediction markets on Truth Social. Rather than integrating Crypto.com's prediction products directly, the company now plans to market those products to its user base. The prediction market sector has drawn heightened attention since the 2024 U.S. election cycle, with platforms such as Polymarket and Kalshi expanding their user bases and attracting institutional interest.

McGurn told Axios that prediction markets have grown increasingly competitive. He indicated that Trump Media sees greater strategic value in distribution and data than in operating its own market infrastructure.

Media and Data Licensing Take Priority

The strategic shift places renewed emphasis on Trump Media's media business, data licensing operations, and the TAE merger. McGurn said the company aims to complete the merger before the end of 2026.

Trump Media's API business has grown to approximately 10 customers, up from roughly five previously. Clients include high-frequency trading firms that use Truth Social data for algorithmic trading. McGurn noted that news organizations and index providers are also engaging with the company, and that Trump Media is exploring licensing agreements with large language model developers and prediction-market platforms. The push into data licensing comes as AI developers face growing demand for diverse, real-time data sources to train and refine large language models.

Meanwhile, Trump Media held 9,542 BTC at the end of the second quarter. Earlier this week, the company moved 2,628 BTC—worth approximately $165 million—to addresses associated with Crypto.com.