New YorkCNN —
For months, former President Donald Trump has been sitting on a social media fortune that he couldn’t touch. That will change very soon.
The lock-up period prohibiting Trump from selling or even borrowing against his $2.3 billion stake in Truth Social owner Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) is scheduled to expire by September 25, according to filings.
In theory, this will give Trump access to a pot of money that he could use to pay sky-high legal fees or even fund his presidential campaign. In reality, Trump faces huge obstacles that would make it very challenging to sell a large chunk of Trump Media – unless he doesn’t mind crashing the stock.
“It would be all but impossible for Trump to liquidate his whole stake or even a third of it without completely tanking the stock price,” Michael Ohlrogge, an associate professor of law at the New York University School of Law who has specialized in corporate governance and financial regulation, told CNN in a phone interview.
And the share price is already tanking.