The White House has denied that the Trump administration’s AI agreement with the United Arab Emirates had any connection to World Liberty Financial. 

This comes after Senate Democrats called for hearings into the Trump family-backed crypto firm’s reported ties to Abu Dhabi.

In comments provided to BeInCrypto, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the UAE AI agreement was designed to deepen a strategic technology partnership between Washington and Abu Dhabi.

“The Trump administration’s historic agreement to enhance the partnership between the United States and the United Arab Emirates on artificial intelligence was designed to ensure the global AI ecosystem will be built with American chips and use American models, all while guaranteeing significant UAE investments into the United States,” Kelly said.

Democrats Press for Hearings

Five Senate Democrats asked Republican committee chairs this week to hold hearings into World Liberty Financial and foreign crypto deals linked to Trump, his family, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.

The request followed reports that a UAE-linked investment vehicle agreed to buy a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial for roughly $500 million shortly before Trump returned to office.

The lawmakers said the timing raised questions about whether foreign-linked money flowing into a Trump family crypto venture overlapped with later US policy decisions involving the UAE.

The White House rejected that connection directly.

“This has everything to do with what is best for the United States and nothing to do with World Liberty Financial – President Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children, and Special Envoy Witkoff has completely divested from the company,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly.

White House Says AI Deal Serves US Interests

The White House framed the UAE agreement as a national security and industrial policy move, rather than a private business matter.

Kelly said the agreement “contains historic commitments by the UAE to further align their national security regulations with the United States, including strong protections to prevent the diversion of US-origin technology.”

That point goes to the center of the dispute.

Democrats argue that the UAE’s role in World Liberty Financial deserves scrutiny because the administration later approved sensitive technology and policy benefits involving Abu Dhabi.

The White House says the AI agreement advanced US strategic interests and included safeguards for American technology.

Ethics Questions Remain at the Center

White House Counsel David Warrington also rejected the suggestion that Trump’s private business interests affected official policy.

“The President has no involvement in business deals that would implicate his constitutional responsibilities. President Trump performs his constitutional duties in an ethically sound manner and to suggest so otherwise is either ill-informed or malicious,” Warrington said.

World Liberty Financial has become a political flashpoint because it sits at the intersection of crypto, foreign capital, and Trump family business interests.

The reported UAE-linked investment has drawn attention because Abu Dhabi has also played a growing role in AI, semiconductors, and digital assets. UAE-backed MGX was separately linked to a $2 billion Binance deal that used World Liberty Financial’s USD1 stablecoin.

Democrats have used those connections to argue that Congress should examine whether foreign actors gained influence through crypto-linked transactions.

The White House says that the argument is politically motivated.

“These Democrats are hellbent on pushing the same, tired narrative that they have used to attack President Trump, his family, and his administration for a decade, even after Americans rejected their lies by re-electing the President to office,” Kelly said.

Witkoff Denies Role in G42 Talks

The senators have also focused on Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Special Envoy for Peace Missions, because of his family’s connection to World Liberty Financial.

Warrington said Witkoff complied with ethics rules and had stepped away from the company.

“Mr. Witkoff, like all Administration officials, takes seriously his compliance with the government ethics rules. As Special Envoy for Peace Missions, he has not and does not participate in any official matters that could impact his financial interests. He has also divested from World Liberty Financial, notwithstanding his ability and willingness to recuse,” Warrington said.

A source close to Witkoff, speaking on background, said his children run World Liberty Financial and that he had no role in the company.

“Steve’s children run World Liberty Financial. Steve has nothing to do with it. The business was started one year before the presidential election. As we have said numerous times, Steve was not involved in negotiations related to G42. He was only briefed on these discussions, which is totally appropriate given his role at the time as Special Envoy to the Middle East. Like President Trump, all of Special Envoy Witkoff’s actions have been for the benefit of the American people,” the source said.

The comments leave the core dispute unresolved.

Democrats want sworn testimony and committee hearings into whether World Liberty Financial’s foreign-linked deals created conflicts inside the administration. 

The White House says the UAE AI agreement had no connection to the firm and that both Trump and Witkoff were separated from relevant business interests.

For now, the fight has moved from crypto markets into congressional oversight.

Source: BeInCrypto