UFC fighters at the White House got paid with Trump family stablecoins—but an ethics expert says a gap in the law allows this

The use of USD1 for UFC bonuses exposes how presidential exemptions from key ethics rules blur the line between public duty and private profit.

Trump’s Ultimate Fighting Championship Freedom 250 spectacle on the White House South Lawn resulted in record bonuses for the winners. The fighters, though, didn’t get paid in U.S. dollars, which would seem to be the obvious currency for such an event. Instead, the prize money came in the form of USD1, a type of synthetic dollar known as a stablecoin, that is run by the Trump family’s cryptocurrency business, World Liberty Financial.

This arrangement created an ethics scenario that would otherwise be illegal for most federal officials and could be treated as a crime, said Richard Painter, a former chief White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration.

“If a Treasury secretary had a financial interest in World Liberty and then participated in any government matter that had a knowing economic impact on World Liberty, that Treasury secretary very likely would commit a felony,” Painter told Fortune.

Under the federal criminal statute 18 U.S.C. § 208, Painter noted, most executive branch employees are barred from taking part in official matters that clearly affect their own financial interests or those of close associates. The president, vice president, and members of Congress, however, are exempt.

In Trump’s case, that exemption allows him to take part in events that feature World Liberty Financial, which issues USD1. Stablecoins like USD1 are backed by cash and government debt, and their issuers earn interest on those reserves, turning every dollar held in tokens into a steady revenue stream. 

World Liberty Financial was founded in 2024 by members of Trump’s family and close business associates. Since its creation, it has become one of the most lucrative parts of the president’s portfolio. According to the venture’s “gold paper,” the co‑founders include Trump, his three sons, Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff and Witkoff’s two sons. The document notes that Trump and Witkoff were removed from the listed team after taking office.

Despite Trump stepping back from the company’s formal governance, his most recent financial disclosure released on Saturday shows he has made more than $57.3 million from sales of World Liberty’s governance token. USD1, launched in 2025 and backed by cash, U.S. Treasuries, and other cash equivalents, now circulates in the billions of dollars, generating tens of millions a year for World Liberty from interest on the reserves that support the stablecoin.

UFC did not immediately respond to Fortune’s questions about which fighters received USD1 payouts, or about how much they received.

The White House did not immediately respond to questions from Fortune about whether officials had evaluated potential conflicts of interest in allowing a Trump‑linked stablecoin to be used at the event.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com