Trump shakes up potential Truth Social merger with return to ex-Twitter

Donald Trump jostled share prices for his prospective business partner when he made a surprise return to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The former president posted his own mugshot on X, the newly renamed social media site owned by Elon Musk, after his booking Thursday night on criminal charges in Georgia, which sent stock for Digital World Acquisition (DWAC) downward, reported Investor's Business Daily.

"Trump's single post on X of his own mug shot Thursday night pushed DWAC stock down 3 percent early before paring losses in above-average volume," the publication reported. "Shares angled up around 3.3 percent to 14.30 Friday during market action. On Thursday, DWAC edged down 0.4 percent to 13.93."

DWAC plans to take Trump Media and Technology Group, the parent company for the Truth Social platform, public in a reverse merger, and the special purpose acquisition company's stock is closely tied to the former president's brand -- which could be diminished by the criminal charges he's facing in four separate cases.

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Shares prices for DWAC are down 92 percent from its high of 175 on Oct. 22, 2021, when news of the Trump merger first broke, although stock prices surged by 50 percent July 21 after the SPAC reached an $18 million dollar fraud settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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DWAC agreed to pay $18 million in civil penalties if the TMTG merger goes through, although the SEC agreed to waive the penalty if the deal doesn't go through before Jan. 1, 2025.

The SEC alleged the company had improper merger discussions before filing its initial public offering.