U.S. Government Invests Over $26 Billion in Corporate Stakes
The Trump administration has invested approximately $26.7 billion across 30 equity or quasi-equity deals, including a significant stake in Intel valued at $42 billion and investments in firms like MP Materials and quantum computing companies. These stakes are spread across multiple federal agencies—Commerce, Defense, Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and Energy—with no centralized ledger of holdings. Transparency remains an issue as only the DFC has clear legal authority to hold equity under a 2018 framework for overseas development deals. Some investments remain ambiguous in nature, such as nine quantum computing stakes announced by Commerce within one week. The Council on Foreign Relations notes that these publicly disclosed deals represent just part of Washington's growing investment portfolio. The government’s largest stake is with Intel, where the Department of Commerce holds 433.3 million shares under a warrant agreement. However, only two-thirds are currently held by the agency; the rest remain in escrow tied to Pentagon milestones. Additionally, federal budgeting rules make it difficult to track returns on these investments.
Topics: corporate stakes transparency Trump administration U.S. government