Trump Group to Pursue World's First Tokenized Hotel Project in the Maldives

Trump Group, together with Saudi Arabian real estate developer Dar Global, plans to develop an ultra-luxury resort in the Maldives and tokenize the project on a blockchain.

According to Bloomberg on the 17th (local time), the Trump Organization and Dar Global announced plans to develop the 'Trump International Hotel Maldives.' The resort will consist of 80 beachfront and overwater villas and is scheduled to open by the end of 2028.

The two companies said the project is "the world's first tokenized hotel development project." Tokenization is a method of dividing existing assets such as real estate into digital tokens so that investors can participate via blockchain. In this project, the development phase itself will be tokenized, allowing investment participation from the initial development stage.

Dar Global is the London-listed unit of Saudi Arabia's Dar Al Arkan and has carried out several development projects in the Middle East with the Trump Group. The two companies are cooperating on building Trump Towers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, and on developing resorts and golf courses in Qatar and Oman. The new Maldives resort will be located offshore about a 25-minute speedboat ride from the capital Malé.

This move also coincides with U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to actively support the cryptocurrency industry since taking office. President Trump and the family business have recently continued to expand into cryptocurrency- and blockchain-related businesses, and the U.S. government recently passed a stablecoin regulatory bill.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is scheduled to visit Washington this week to meet with President Trump. The two sides are expected to discuss ways to deepen economic cooperation between the two countries.