It was revealed that a Korean corporations in a trade dispute with the U.S. government gave $2 million (about 3 billion won) to Donald Trump's U.S. president holding company. The corporations that provided the funds was identified as an affiliate of Base Group owned by Chairman Kim Sung-jip, who over many years built ties with the Trump family and pursued wine import and golf course businesses together.
According to a compilation of reporting by the New York Times (NYT) on the 14th local time, Base Group was found to have paid $2 million last year to the Trump Organization in the president's annual financial disclosure released in late June. The payment reason written in the document was limited to a brief note: "part of a letter of intent and nonrefundable development fee." Base Group and the Trump family told the NYT that "the funds are expenses related to a golf course development project that has not yet been officially announced."
However, some raised suspicions that, because Base Group's great-grandchild company "Korea Aluminum" is currently facing strong sanctions from the U.S. government, the funds may have been lobbying money to lift those sanctions. Korea Aluminum is a subsidiary of CAMUS E&C, a construction affiliate of Base Group. Earlier, the U.S. Department of Commerce determined that Korea Aluminum processed Chinese aluminum in Korea and rerouted exports to the United States, and imposed a high tariff in 2025. Korea Aluminum, on the other hand, is strongly protesting the Commerce Department's action, saying the products were legitimately produced with its own technology. Because of this, doubts arose over why the parent company of a corporations whose exports were blocked by a tariff bomb handed a large sum of money specifically to the U.S. president's private company.
The NYT reported it found no evidence that the president or his family improperly intervened with the U.S. government on behalf of Base Group or Korea Aluminum. Both parties also said that "the trade dispute and this funds transaction are unrelated." Alan Garten, chief legal officer (CLO) of the Trump Organization, said, "We have been in the golf, hotel and real estate business for decades and have transacted with countless corporations around the world," and countered, "The theory that we pursued this deal for reasons other than legitimate business considerations is fiction." Kush Desai, White House Spokesperson, also emphasized, "There was no conflict of interest."
But the NYT criticized that the very fact of a president having financial entanglements with foreign corporations could become a potential risk factor for the United States in the future. Barry Appleton, an international trade attorney, said, "The Constitution was built on the assumption that in every situation where a president might feel conflicted, the president would always step back," and added, "Americans did not need to suspect that the president acts for private gain, but this time that concern was not resolved."
At the center of the controversy, Base Group is a mid-sized comprehensive corporations that includes CAMUS E&C, strong in civil engineering and architecture, and Kumyang International, a leading domestic liquor importer. Chairman Kim Sung-jip has cultivated close ties with the Trump family over nearly 10 years. Since 2017, through Kumyang International, it has held exclusive rights to sell products from Trump Winery in Virginia in Korea. Chairman Kim attended the president's inauguration held in Washington, D.C., in 2025. In Feb. this year, he invited Eric Trump, the second son, to Korea, led a dinner with political and business figures, and discussed projects including golf course development.