• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

2

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

3

Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock

1

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

2

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

3

Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
FinanceDonald Trump

An investor says he put 98% of his retirement funds in Trump Media stock and won’t bail because Trump has a ‘secret’ plan

Sasha Rogelberg
By
Sasha Rogelberg
Sasha Rogelberg
Reporter
Down Arrow Button Icon
Sasha Rogelberg
By
Sasha Rogelberg
Sasha Rogelberg
Reporter
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 23, 2024, 5:07 AM ET
Donald Trump smirks and raises his fist in the air.
Investors in Trump Media say they are using the bulk of their retirement funds to buy company shares.Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Trump-supporting retirees have gone all-in on investing in Trump Media, even as the stock has proven to be volatile.  

Recommended Video

One user, who only goes by @DTLjohnny, said on Trump Media-owned Truth Social he sunk 98% of his total retirement into the stock. As of September, he estimated he had lost 60% of his investment. Nevertheless, he seemed confident in the company’s ability to right its sails.

“But I knew this day would come when the Deep State crooks would become so desperate that they would shove all-in with their counterfeit shares.  Everybody can see what they’re doing. And I believe this is part of the plan of full exposure,” the user wrote in September. “And there ain’t no way Trump’s letting them bankrupt his company! Have faith. He and [Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes] have a plan. But it’s a plan that they have to keep secret…for now.”

He likely recouped a big chunk of his losses. Shares soared more than 300% from a late-September low to late-October high but have since retreated about 40%.

Another investor expressed concern about the stock. John Viaud, a South Carolina retiree, said his “entire pension is in jeopardy” after losing $600,000 on investments in Trump Media.

“If we don’t see a green day tomorrow I may need to bail,” he said in a Truth Social post in September.

In a separate post, Truth Social chastised the Washington Post’s previous coverage of investors who lost money on Trump Media stock, saying the outlet came to “preconceived conclusions” and omitted Trump Media’s full critique of the story’s content.

Viaud, responding to Truth Social’s criticism of the Post story, said he continued to invest in Trump Media and he was able to mostly recover his loss “due to the success of the companies [sic] stock performance.” 

Fortune was unable to independently verify the Truth Social users’ investment portfolios. The users did not respond to Fortune’s interview requests, and Trump Media did not respond to Fortune’s request for comment. 

Persistent backing of Trump’s media and technology company has become a way for Trump’s followers to show their fervent support for the president-elect. But these retirees who were do-or-die on Trump Media prior to the election are in for a tough wake-up call if they’re still pouring funds into the stock after Trump’s Nov. 5 triumph. Despite a 6% boost for the stock the day after the election, share prices have since fallen 13%, erasing the earlier gain. 

The stock followed the pattern of a larger “Trump bump” of stock explosions shortly after the election—which helped the S&P 500 gain 3.5% in the second week of November, its best post-election session ever—but has since mellowed.

Trump Media has always been volatile. It’s lost more than 53% of its value since March 26, which marked its first day trading as a public company after its special purpose acquisition company merger. To further spook investors, executives like CFO Phillip Juhan and company director Eric Swider have sold a combined 536,000 shares of the company since the election. Trump himself has said he won’t sell his stock, remaining its largest shareholder with 54% ownership, worth about $3.2 billion.

Trump’s victory paradox

Trump Media’s rocky path since the election indicates Trump’s victory hasn’t solved the stock’s volatility or Truth Social’s financials.

According to recent filings, Trump Media is hemorrhaging money, largely because Truth Social’s conservative usership remains narrow and because its main source of revenue is advertising dollars, which totaled just $2.6 million in the first nine months of the year and were down 23% from a year ago. The company lost $363 million in the same period. Trump Media is now considering creating a cryptocurrency payment platform called TruthFi, which would act as another revenue source.

Trump’s Truth Social was originally started in early 2022 as a way for Trump to platform his ideas after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook following the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. But Elon Musk’s X—which has 70.4 million monthly active users to Truth Social’s 698,000 as of September, according to Similarweb—has become a hotbed for spreading conservative ideology since Musk bought the app in October 2022. Trump returned to the platform in August 2023. With an alliance between the two sites speculated to be in the works, Truth Social’s value proposition as an amplifier for Trump and his followers has weakened.

“Trump Media’s whole argument was: We’re going to allow freedom of expression in a way that hasn’t existed in years,” Mike Stegemoller, a Baylor University finance professor, told the Washington Post. 

Trump’s return to the presidency—and an international platform carefully watched by global leaders, followers, and opponents, alike—further diminishes the appeal of an app built specifically to provide a voice for him.

“That doesn’t bode well for a company that already makes very little revenue,” Stegemoller said.

About the Author
Sasha Rogelberg
By Sasha RogelbergReporter
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon

Sasha Rogelberg is a reporter and former editorial fellow on the news desk at Fortune, covering retail and the intersection of business and popular culture.

See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Trump cancels signing a housing bill and blindsides his own party in a social media post
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trump cancels signing a housing bill and blindsides his own party in a social media post
By The Associated Press, Mary Clare Jalonick, Kevin Freking, Josh Boak and Lisa MascaroJune 24, 2026
1 hour ago
t
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trumps holds landmark affordable housing bill hostage over his pet issue: the ‘national emergency’ of voter ID
By Mary Clare Jalonick and The Associated PressJune 24, 2026
1 hour ago
s
BankingScott Bessent
Scott Bessent calls Mamdani ‘leader of the Democratic Party,’ touts weekly Warsh breakfasts and a new push to put every American in the stock market
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago
a
RetailAmazon
Amazon’s record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
2 hours ago
rd
AsiaChina
Ray Dalio just finished a 10-day trip to China. He says global leaders know America ‘doesn’t have what it takes to fight to maintain its empire’
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
3 hours ago
Top CD rates from major banks June 24, 2026: Chase CDs, Bank of America CDs, Citibank CDs, and more
Personal FinanceCertificates of Deposit (CDs)
Top CD rates from major banks on June 24, 2026: Chase CDs, Bank of America CDs, Citibank CDs, and more
By Joseph HostetlerJune 24, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
Success
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
Economy
The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
By Jacqueline MunisJune 24, 2026
10 hours ago
Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
Banking
Markets tumble worldwide as Fed resets expectations: $400 billion wiped off SpaceX stock
By Jim EdwardsJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of June 23, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 23, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
By Danny BakstJune 23, 2026
1 day ago
Texas and Charlotte used to build huge McMansions—now they're copying the California design tricks they once mocked
Real Estate
Texas and Charlotte used to build huge McMansions—now they're copying the California design tricks they once mocked
By Sydney LakeJune 22, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.