US President Donald Trump. — Bloomberg
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has bought hundreds of bonds since he returned to office, including those sold by US companies affected by the sweeping changes to federal policies he’s championed.
The 690 transactions, the first of which was made the day after his inauguration, total at least US$103.7mill, according to a document released by the White House that disclosed the billionaire’s investing activity this year through early August.
In addition to municipal bonds issued by local governments, school boards, airport authorities and gas districts, Trump bought corporate debt in tranches of at least US$500,000 each from Qualcomm Inc, Home Depot and T-Mobile US on Feb 10.
He also purchased at least US$250,000 of debt from Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc later that month.
The report, which all federal elected officials and appointees who trade must submit, doesn’t provide exact amounts or prices, since only broad ranges of transactions involving stocks, bonds, commodity futures and other securities are required. Trump reported no sales.
The investments provide another example of how the president, whose net worth is pegged at US$6.4bil by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, continues to pursue wealth accumulation while in office.
Unlike his predecessors, Trump didn’t divest or move his assets into a blind trust with an independent overseer.
His sprawling business empire is managed by two of his sons and operates in several areas that intersect with presidential policy.
Trump has held meetings with leaders of businesses whose supply chains have been upended by his implementation of the highest tariffs in decades as well as technology industry executives.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on the 33-page filing, which was dated Aug 12 and provided to the Office of Government Ethics.
In an earlier financial disclosure report spanning his activity in 2024, Trump listed hundreds of bonds held in personal investment accounts that are separate from his business empire.
The latter encompasses properties like his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago, his stake in Trump Media & Technology Group Corp and crypto ventures that have added at least US$620mil to his fortune in recent months, according to the Bloomberg index.
Under federal ethics law, presidents aren’t required to divest assets that may pose conflicts of interest, but they have done so anyway.
Trump is the first president to buck that since the law was passed in 1978. — Bloomberg
