Trump family-linked crypto firm AI Financial to acquire Block Street for up to $43 million

According to Odaily, AI Financial (formerly Alt5 Sigma), a publicly listed crypto company associated with U.S. President Donald Trump's family, has announced its intention to acquire Block Street, a crypto infrastructure startup, for up to $43 million. Block Street was founded and is currently led by Matthew Morgan, who also serves as an advisor to AI Financial and is its largest shareholder.

The deal was reached last Monday, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Block Street was incorporated in October 2025, but Morgan stated that the business had been operational for approximately 16 months prior.

The acquisition has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, as Morgan serves both as an advisor to AI Financial and as the founder of the company being acquired. He was previously briefly nominated as Chief Investment Officer in a deal involving AI Financial and World Liberty Financial, but later transitioned to an unpaid advisory role.

In August, AI Financial reached an agreement with World Liberty Financial to include approximately $1.5 billion in crypto assets on its balance sheet, in exchange for equity and a board seat. This partnership has positioned the company as part of the "Trump family crypto ecosystem."

In an interview, Morgan denied that the transaction constitutes a self-dealing arrangement, stating that Block Street focuses on tokenization and ICO infrastructure capabilities, areas that AI Financial is seeking to enter. He noted that he had pitched the asset to several other publicly listed companies and turned down higher valuation offers.

However, since establishing ties with the Trump family's crypto projects, AI Financial's stock price has fallen by over 90%, reflecting ongoing market skepticism toward the "crypto reserve-oriented publicly listed company" model.

This deal has also reignited controversy over internal transactions and corporate governance at publicly listed companies. Similar cases have emerged frequently in the crypto industry in recent months, with multiple companies facing criticism for mixing asset operations with related-party transactions, raising investor concerns about the risk of conflicts of interest. (Fortune)