- President Donald Trump has reportedly put $100 million into bonds since taking office in January, through a mixed bet on the debt of both big companies like Meta and Home Depot as well as municipal governments and public entities. The move is notable because he has not placed his investments in a blind trust, unlike other presidents, but also because, as one expert believes, it signals that he expects interest rates to fall.
President Donald Trump has gone on a bond-buying spree since taking office, reportedly sinking more than $100 million into debt issued by big companies and municipal governments alike.
Trump put millions of dollars behind his bond strategy in February including between $500,000 and $1 million each into bonds issued by companies such as Home Depot, T-Mobile, and United Healthcare. Another bet of between $250,000 and $500,000 went into debt issued by Meta, based on a CNBC calculation of 690 transactions reported to the Office of Government Ethics since January and published Tuesday. He has also bought debt issued by local U.S. governments, gas districts, water supply districts, hospital authorities, and school boards, according to CNBC.
The White House did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
Investors usually turn to bonds because they are less volatile than stocks. A bond is like a loan that pays out interest to an investor, usually semiannually, over a defined period. Once that period ends and the bond reaches maturity, the investor gets their principal investment back.
Trump’s bond-buying binge stands out because he, unlike other presidents, has not put his investments into a true blind trust. Otherwise, Trump’s bond purchases, whether directed by him or the person in charge of his finances, look like the typical bet of a deep-pocketed investor—one who thinks interest rates are set to fall, said Russell Rhoads, a clinical associate professor of financial management at Indiana University.
Because bond prices typically rise when interest rates fall, it’s possible Trump made the bets hoping he could later sell the bonds at a profit. Rates are likely to drop faster for corporate bonds than for government bonds because they are riskier, said Rhoads. Trump’s insistent pressure for the Fed to cut rates could also be akin to him “talking his book,” added Rhoads.
“You could take the way that he’s been pushing so hard for the Fed to cut rates as like a portfolio manager going on CNBC and talking positive about a stock that’s a big holding of theirs to try to get other people to buy it,” Rhoads told Fortune.
The Fed and interest rates
The Fed has held interest rates steady at between 4.25% and 4.5% since late 2024, although some investors are looking to the central bank’s September meeting for a possible rate cut.
Trump’s purchase of municipal bonds, issued by state and local governments, could also be part of the investment strategy, because the interest they yield is generally exempt from federal income taxes. A bond from an investor’s home state will generally be exempt from state taxes. With the stock market near all-time highs, a preference for bonds could be wise.
“It’s just a logical portfolio management move, as opposed to, you know, something that he knows about rates that the rest of us don’t know,” said Rhoads.
Trump has maintained ultimate control over his businesses and investments, while delegating responsibility for his business empire to his sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump. The president and his immediate family have reportedly seen profits of $3.4 billion months into his term, especially from his crypto dealings, The New Yorker reported. The president and vice president are exempt from the main law aimed at preventing conflicts of interest by government officials.
