While his administration was dismantling the main federal agency that oversaw the banks, President Donald Trump was quietly buying securities issued by those same banks and did not disclose the purchases to the public for several months.
Federal ethics disclosures published on March 4, 2026 reveal that Trump made more than 170 separate investment purchases between May and November 2025, the vast majority of them in securities tied to major financial institutions. The transactions, disclosed in a series of late OGE Form 278-T periodic transaction reports filed with the US Office of Government Ethics, were submitted well after the legally required reporting window, with the government's own filings noting the notifications were 'received over 30 days ago' and that Trump paid late filing fees.
