Since Donald Trump Jr. joined VC firm 1789 Capital after his father won the election, he has been busy monetizing the Make America Great (MAGA) ecosystem.
He is betting on media, pharmaceuticals, guns and codes while opposing environmental, social, governance (ESG) and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), reported the Financial Times.
The VC company was co-founded by Trump donor Omed Malik (subsack supporter) and is supported by Rebekah Mercer, a supporter of conservative news site Breitbart. Conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, right-wing radio personality Clay Travis, and investor Mark Andreesen were early supporters in 1789, according to Bloomberg.
Less than two miles from Mar-a-Lago, the 1789 team is immersed in the world of Trump. So far, the company has led a $15 million seed round for Tucker Carlson’s new media company. Over $50 million has been poured into Elon Musk’s Companies Xai and SpaceX. According to Bloomberg, it invested in a beverage company founded by right-wing YouTuber The Nelk Boys to support the forecasting site Polymarket.
The company is reportedly seeking companies to acquire in hopes of President Trump relaxing some financial regulatory rules, sources told Bloomberg.
Overall, 1789 has raised $500 million since his inauguration date, and hopes to raise at least $1 billion for his first fund by the mid-term this year, particularly from contributions and pensions from Republican countries.
Elsewhere, Trump Jr. is on boards of three public companies, including drone makers, conservative markets and FinTech, according to Bloomberg and the Financial Times. He is on the board of Blinkrx, a 1789 portfolio company that delivers drugs. He is an advisor to firearms retailer Grabagun, and Malik said he and Trump Jr. are about to make an appearance this year. He is an advisor to Calci, another forecasting market company, and along with his brother Eric, he is an investor at biotechnology company Dominali Holdings.
He is of course the sole trustee of Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social.
Bloomberg was surprised by how many Trump Jr. decided to go deeper into the world of startups and investment after his father became president again, but the move has since become another indication of deepening the economic and social connections between Silicon Valley power players and Capitol Hill.
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