President Donald Trump has reportedly purchased up to $2 million worth of bonds in both Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery in the days following the announcement of a substantial $72 billion merger deal between the two media conglomerates. These acquisitions form part of a broader set of transactions disclosed in the latest White House financial report, which includes 191 financial activities, comprising sales valued at a minimum of $1.25 million and purchases of corporate and municipal bonds collectively reaching as high as $51 million.
The financial disclosure, submitted as mandated by the Office of Government Ethics, specifies that these bond transactions occurred between November 14 and December 19. Due to the reporting format presenting broad ranges rather than precise figures, the exact amounts involved in Trump’s purchases or sales remain somewhat ambiguous, with some individual investments indicated within brackets spanning from $1 million to $5 million.
According to a White House representative speaking to CNN, all investments in President Trump's stock and bond portfolio are controlled by independent, third-party financial managers. These holdings are administered within discretionary accounts that utilize computerized model portfolios designed to track benchmarks like the Schwab 1000 Index. The White House emphasized that neither the President nor any family member has the authority to influence investment decisions, including timing or selection, which are entirely delegated to independent managers operating without direct input from Trump.
Concerns Over Potential Conflicts of Interest
Ethical scrutiny has intensified regarding Trump’s financial stakes in Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery, particularly due to his statements expressing intent to partake in governmental decisions on the merger’s regulatory approval. Ann Skeet, senior director of leadership ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, noted the apparent conflict, elaborating that the President’s investments in companies subject to his direct oversight raise significant ethical issues. Skeet asserted that such scenarios compromise the mandate for the President to act solely in the public's best interest without personal financial considerations influencing decision-making.
When Trump assumed office, the Trump Organization released an ethics plan delineating that the President would abstain from managing day-to-day business operations of his corporate holdings. However, the plan did not require divestitures or ethical recusals concerning decisions impacting his business interests. This latest round of investments in Netflix and related media bonds adds to a growing list of potential ethical conflicts, which also includes issues linked to the President’s involvement with cryptocurrency holdings, according to Richard Painter, former chief ethics attorney under President George W. Bush and a law professor at the University of Minnesota. Painter described the Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery bond purchases as "one more investment" that might conflict with official duties, though not among the most critical. He also characterized Trump’s approach to managing conflicts of interest as "unprecedented," contrasting it with previous presidents who typically sought to minimize such conflicts, even though legal statutes do not explicitly bind the sitting President.
Details and Market Context of the Transactions
The disclosure reveals that on December 12 and December 16 specifically, Trump acquired bonds in Netflix and Discovery Communications – the latter being an entity within the Warner Bros. Discovery conglomerate. Each of these acquisitions was valued between $250,001 and $500,000 per transaction. This activity closely followed the announcement of Netflix’s proposed $72 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, which includes a vast array of assets such as the Warner Bros. TV and movie studios as well as the HBO streaming platform. Notably, Warner Bros. Discovery is also the corporate parent of CNN, a network explicitly excluded from the merger.
Warner Bros. Discovery plans to execute a corporate split into two separately traded entities by 2026, with Netflix set to acquire the Warner half, while the other entity, Discovery Global, will encompass CNN and other cable networks. Adding complexity to the deal, Paramount announced a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. on December 8 in an effort to block the Netflix acquisition. Despite Paramount's efforts, Warner Bros. Discovery has reaffirmed Netflix as its preferred partner, formally rejecting Paramount’s offer in early January.
Paramount’s CEO, David Ellison, and his father Larry Ellison, co-founder of Oracle, have notable connections to President Trump; Larry Ellison hosted a Trump fundraiser in 2020 and is spearheading a consortium acquiring and managing the majority of TikTok’s U.S. assets. While Larry Ellison has not publicly supported Trump’s 2024 campaign, these associations further highlight the intertwined nature of corporate and political interests in the context of these high-profile media transactions.
President Trump publicly stated on the eve of Paramount's takeover attempt that he would "be involved" in the regulatory review of Netflix's bid to purchase Warner Bros. This declaration draws heightened ethical concern given his simultaneous direct investments in the companies involved.
Beyond media-related securities, Trump's financial disclosures also include bond purchases in notable American firms such as Boeing, Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, and General Motors, underscoring a broad portfolio of corporate debt holdings.
The involvement of media companies central to significant mergers coupled with Trump's financial interests in these same entities presents a multidimensional challenge to standard ethical boundaries typically observed in government and finance. The administration's assurance of independent financial management stands amid ongoing debate regarding the sufficiency of such arrangements in mitigating conflicts when regulatory roles intersect with personal investments.