Trump enriched speculators: his administration is suspected of illegal enrichment, – media

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The CME Exchange and the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission are investigating bets on falling oil prices ahead of Trump’s statements.

In March-April, ahead of important statements by US President Donald Trump on policy towards Iran, speculators placed bets on a drop in oil prices worth up to $7 billion on various exchanges, Reuters reports , citing data from traders, market experts and its own analysis of exchange data.

According to journalists’ calculations, bets worth $7 billion could yield hundreds of millions of dollars in profit, depending on the time period in which they were made.

Reuters was unable to identify who placed the bets on falling oil prices or from which country they were from, but it is known that the bets were placed on two major exchanges where oil and fuel futures are traded: the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).

The publication notes that traders first noticed unusual oil futures deals on March 23. The deals were concluded minutes before Trump announced the postponement of planned attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure, which caused oil prices to fall.

“The same situation repeated itself on April 7, before Trump announced a ceasefire with Iran, which caused Brent crude futures on the ICE exchange to fall by 15%. The situation repeated itself on April 17, when Iranian officials and Trump talked about opening the Strait of Hormuz, and then again on April 21, when Trump extended the ceasefire,” the journalists note.

According to a source familiar with the matter, the CME is investigating bets on oil prices falling ahead of Trump’s comments, while the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is also investigating, Reuters reported.

Due to the coincidence of Trump’s statements with sharp fluctuations in oil prices, analysts and some politicians suspect that individuals associated with the administration used knowledge of Trump’s upcoming decisions for illicit enrichment.

Back in April 2025, Senator Adam Schiff called on Congress to investigate whether President Donald Trump engaged in insider trading or market manipulation.

(C)UNIAN 2026