Trump Would Have a Hard Time Divesting His Businesses—Even If He Wanted To

Late on Nov. 21, President-elect Donald Trump tweeted: “Prior to the election it was well known that I have interests in properties all over the world. Only the crooked media makes this a big deal!” He may have been referring to stories, since denied, about whether he used a post-election phone call with Argentina’s president to discuss a planned Trump-branded development in Buenos Aires. Or photos of Trump taking time off from vetting cabinet members to meet with his Indian business partners. Maybe it was the photo of his daughter Ivanka Trump sitting in on his Nov. 17 meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Trump’s businesses, which give him an estimated net worth of $3 billion, are far-flung. He owes debts to foreign lenders, including Deutsche Bank and UBS. He’s associated with companies battling with federal regulatory agencies, whose heads he will appoint. He has ties to real estate concerns in several countries, including Azerbaijan, the Philippines, and Turkey.