Donald Trump’s initiative, the Board of Peace, which is focused on the reconstruction of the war-damaged Gaza region, currently holds an empty World Bank account, despite having collected billions in membership fees.
Initially introduced by the former US president in January, the board aimed to gather $1 billion ‘lifetime membership’ fees from various global leaders, notably from countries such as Israel, Qatar, and Bahrain.
These member nations committed to a $7 billion aid package for Gaza, while Trump pledged an additional $10 billion in funding from the United States.
However, according to the Financial Times, the Board of Peace’s World Bank account has yet to see any significant financial contributions from donors, based on information from four informed sources.
“There have been zero dollars deposited,” a source revealed.
Reports from the Telegraph suggest that instead of using the JP Morgan-managed account endorsed by the UN, donors are opting to send money directly to the US, according to an official associated with the board.
The official insisted that the Board of Peace has already collected ‘significant funds.’
They said: ‘Since the board’s inception, we have had multiple options and mechanisms for the transfer of funds from contributing countries.
Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, aimed at rebuilding Gaza, is empty despite receiving billions of dollars in memberships
A man carries a propane gas cylinder on his back while walking through debris and destruction littering a street in the Jabalia camp for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City
‘Up to this point, our members have focused on mechanisms outside of the World Bank mechanism, but that option, along with others, remains available. There is no technical or operational difference here.
‘Funds are being scrupulously managed with oversight protocols to carry out the mandate prescribed to us by the President and UN Security Council Resolution 2803.
‘Some countries have made their contributions public; that is their decision and we respect it. We will continue to request funds on an as-needed basis as more projects come online to improve conditions in Gaza and enhance security and stability.’
Of the nine countries that pledged money to the project, only Morocco and the UAE have sent funds to the JP Morgan-run account.
Contributions of about $3million from Morocco and $20million from the UAE have helped fund the office of Nickolay Mladenov, the ‘high representative’ for postwar Gaza, according to the FT.
The funds have also gone towards the salaries for the Palestinian technocratic committee that the board formed to govern the strip.
The UAE also recently provided $100million to train a new police force for Gaza, but the programme has yet to start, and the funds are frozen.
Two people familiar with post-war Gaza planning reiterated that ‘not one US dollar’ has been deployed for the rebuilding of the enclave.
Meanwhile, the US State Department intends to reallocate about $1.2billion in aid towards projects linked to the Board of Peace, but the funds have not been spent.
‘None of that money [has gone to the board]. None of that money is being managed by the Board of Peace.
‘And [the State Department] tells us there’s no intent to have any of that money managed by the Board of Peace,’ a senior congressional aide told the FT.
A spokesperson for the board said no contracts have yet been awarded. ‘A lot of it is because we’re not operating in Gaza yet’.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House and the US State Department for comment.
It comes as the European Central Bank recently warned that Trump’s war with Iran and unpredictable trade policies could spark a financial crisis.
The conflict in the Middle East has put the resilience of the financial system ‘to the test’, ECB Vice President Luis De Guindos recently wrote in a biannual Financial Stability Report.
‘While the full impact of the war is unclear at this stage, the repercussions for the global economy and financial stability are becoming graver the longer it lasts,’ he said.
U.S President Donald Trump, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner stand with world leaders participating in the inaugural Board of Peace meeting at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 19, 2026
The economic fallout from the Iran war has driven up inflation and damaged growth, but the ECB also blamed volatility in Trump’s trade policies.
It also expressed concern that the US president is pulling Washington back from its traditional role of global leadership, exacerbating threats to the financial system.
‘Uncertainty surrounding the commitment of the US administration to multilateral co-operation is also increasing the risk that policy shocks will disrupt the international order and spur geoeconomic and regulatory fragmentation around the globe,’ the bank said.
‘Tariff announcements, pauses and reversals have become a structural feature of the global environment,’ it added.
The warning from the ECB comes after Trump said last week that a deal with Iran, including opening the Strait of Hormuz, has been ‘largely negotiated’.
‘Final aspects and details of the Deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly,’ Trump said on social media on Saturday.
He said he had spoken with leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, and separately with Israel.
He described it as a ‘Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE’ that must be finalised by the US, Iran and the other countries that participated in the calls.
Aerial photo taken by drone shows the destruction in the middle of Gaza city by Israel bombs
Twelve weeks have passed since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, killing top Iranian officials, including its supreme leader and interrupting nuclear talks between the US and Iran for the second time in less than a year.
Iran fired at Israel and at neighbours hosting US forces, shaking Gulf nations that had considered themselves safe havens in a tough region.
Tehran’s decision to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz for ships carrying regional oil, natural gas and other critical supplies has been a focal point of global concern and economic pain.
A ceasefire has held since April 7, but it was shaken on Monday when the US military said it had carried out ‘self-defence’ strikes in southern Iran, including on missile launch sites and boats placing mines.
The strikes were done ‘to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,’ but the military was ‘using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,’ Captain Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for the US military’s Central Command, said in a statement.
