The Trump Organization and Saudi developer Dar Global, whose shares trade on the London Stock Exchange, have announced plans to build an 80-villa luxury resort near Malé, the capital of the Maldives. According to the Financial Times, it marks the companies’ first joint project in South Asia and one of the earliest attempts to use tokenization in the premium real-estate sector.

Tokenization as a New Funding Model

The project aims to attract outside investors through blockchain technology, which enables physical assets to be divided into digital, tradable shares. Dar Global and the Trump Organization have already collaborated across the Middle East — from Trump Towers in Dubai and Jeddah to golf clubs and hotels in Qatar and Oman. But the Maldivian development will rely on a fundamentally different capital-raising structure: instead of traditional financing, the project will employ a decentralized ledger.

Eric Trump said the tokenization model “will set a new standard for innovation in real estate,” though specific details of the mechanism have not yet been disclosed.

Blockchain Against a Shifting Political and Geopolitical Backdrop

The announcement comes as Saudi Arabia prepares for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s first visit to Washington in seven years. Riyadh is seeking to strengthen defense ties with the United States and secure agreements in artificial intelligence and security while continuing efforts to diversify its economy beyond oil.

At the same time, the Trump family has been expanding its footprint in the crypto sector. According to the FT, crypto-linked businesses associated with the family generated more than $1 billion in taxable profit over the past year. The expansion coincides with policies from the Trump administration seen as favorable to the digital-assets industry.

Deepening Investment Links With the Gulf

The Maldivian project adds to a growing list of major Gulf investments connected to Trump-associated business interests. Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), previously committed $2 billion to Affinity Partners, the investment fund founded by Jared Kushner.

In addition, Abu Dhabi-based MGX purchased $2 billion worth of stablecoins from World Liberty Financial, a company in which the Trump family holds a stake.

Financing the Maldivian resort through blockchain — and doing so with a major Middle Eastern partner — further underscores the tightening financial ties between Gulf investors and business structures closely intertwined with U.S. politics.

A Testbed for the Future of Luxury Real Estate

The resort is being positioned not merely as another high-end destination but as a platform that merges traditional luxury real estate with decentralized finance tools. If successful, the project could become a significant case study for integrating blockchain technologies into the upper tier of the global property market.