All the times Trump's words have influenced the markets. And someone gained from it
From the attack on Venezuela to Iran, but not only: Wall Street Journal investigation into the times when the US president speaks or writes on his social, and there is often someone who manages to exploit statements in advance to make money
From the attacks in Iran to tariffs to the capture of Maduro, Donald Trump's sudden decisions influence markets by causing sudden changes of course. The point is that, on several occasions, streams of unusual trades have been recorded before his announcements and not after, notes the Wall Street journal. And the last case dates back to 23 March 2026, writes the WSJ.
On Monday morning, Trump announced on Truth Social that he would postpone attacks on Iranian power plants due to 'productive' talks with Tehran. About 15 minutes before the post, a sudden flurry of activity hit the oil futures market and within two minutes from 6:49 a.m. to 6:51 a.m. Eastern Time, futures on Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate worth over $760 million were traded, according to Dow Jones market data. A similar surge of activity occurred simultaneously in futures on the S&P 500. For the detractors, someone knew in advance of the tycoon's move and was illicitly profiting from it, although there is no evidence of leaks or insider trading.
Dem Senator Murphy: 'Staggering corruption'
'Who did it? Trump? A member of his family? A member of the White House staff? This is corruption. Staggering corruption," Dem Senator Chris Murphy attacked on X. "All federal employees are subject to government ethics guidelines that prohibit the use of non-public information for profit. However, any suggestion that administration officials are involved in such activities without evidence is unfounded and constitutes irresponsible reporting," a White House spokeswoman had clarified.
But this is not the first time similar incidents have occurred. On 28 February 2026 shortly after the attack in Iran, the blockchain analysis company Bubblemaps identified a group of alleged insiders who made $1.2 million betting on an attack through Polymarket, a cryptocurrency-based prediction market.
Not only that, an hour before Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was captured by the US military, a mysterious trader placed his latest bet, totalling some $34,000 in winnings on bets initiated in December of events related to Venezuela. And again on 10 October, angered by Chinese restrictions on rare earths, Trump threatened an additional tariffs of 100% against Beijing. Shortly before, on the crypto platform Hyperliquid two accounts bet large sums with a profit of $160 million. On 9 April, on the other hand, shortly before the announcement of a 90-day halt to US tariffs on dozens of countries, a wave of trading activity began in options linked to the exchange-traded fund SPY. The trades involved short-term bullish option calls that would only yield a profit if the index closed sharply higher that afternoon. 'Crazy, someone knew,' tweeted Unusual Whales, a kind of whisleblower of potential insider trading activity.
