Shares of Digital World Acquisition jumped 35% Monday after the blank check company said it had completed its merger with the Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG).

TMTG owns social media platform Truth Social and is backed by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

Windfall

Digital World shareholders approved on Friday the merger with TMTG, allowing the deal to be completed and providing a windfall for Trump as he fights legal cases against him while contesting the 2024 U.S. presidential elections.

Digital World shares rose as high as $51.80, up 40.2%, and recouping all losses from Friday's session, when it closed down 13.7%. The stock and warrants are set to begin trading on Nasdaq on Tuesday with tickers "DJT" and "DJTWW." It was last up 31% at $48.36.

The deal delivers a $300 million cash infusion to Truth Social, which had lost $10.6 million from its operations in the first nine months of 2023 on revenue of $3.4 million.

Trump, who is set to secure the Republican nomination for president, will own between 58.1% and 69.4% of the combined company. His stake was valued at about $3.3 billion after shareholders approved the deal on Friday.

In another victory for Trump, a New York state appeals court on Monday allowed a pause to his $454 million civil fraud judgment if he posts a smaller $175 million bond within 10 days, a move that blocks any possible seizure of his assets by state authorities.

'Truth Social Hot as a Pistol'

“Truth Social is doing very well,” Trump said Monday at a press conference following the appeals court slashing the former president's bond to $175 million from $454 million in the civil fraud judgment.

“It's hot as a pistol and doing great,” Trump continued, adding he chose Truth Social’s initial public offering for Nasdaq instead of the New York Stock Exchange because of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil suit.

While the executives of the NYSE “badly want” the Truth Social IPO, Trump said he told them, “We can't do the New York Stock Exchange. You're treated too badly in New York. The people at the New York Stock Exchange are very, very upset about it.

“The top person is mortified,” Trump continued. “Can't believe it. He said, ‘I'm losing business because people don't want to be in New York,’” or list their companies’ stock on the New York Stock Exchange.

“They don't want to be attacked by a thug like this horrible attorney general that we have in New York, the worst in the whole country,” Trump continued. “I can tell you the people at the New York Stock Exchange are not happy.”