Nicolai Haugsted
Trump’s government owns billions in corporate stakes—but no one can find the full list.
Washington has quietly become one of the country’s most active corporate investors, pouring tens of billions of dollars into companies spanning semiconductors, critical minerals and quantum computing. Yet despite the scale of those investments, no single public record shows exactly what the federal government owns.
A Fortune investigation found the Trump administration has committed roughly $26.7 billion through around 30 equity or equity-like transactions, raising fresh questions about transparency as the government’s corporate portfolio continues to grow.
Among the administration’s biggest holdings is a 9.9% stake in Intel, originally acquired through an agreement with the Commerce Department. Shares obtained under the deal have surged in value, with the position now estimated to be worth around $42 billion.
Washington has also committed $400 million to rare-earth producer MP Materials in an effort to reduce US dependence on China’s supply of critical minerals. Other investments include ownership interests in several quantum computing companies, while the government also secured a so-called “golden share” in U.S. Steel as part of its sale to Japan’s Nippon Steel.
Despite the growing list of investments, no central database exists detailing the government’s portfolio.
No complete record of government ownership
According to Fortune, the holdings are spread across at least four federal agencies, including the Departments of Commerce, Defense and Energy, along with the Development Finance Corporation (DFC).
Only the DFC has explicit legal authority granted by Congress to acquire equity stakes, while other agencies report their holdings under different legal frameworks.
A Treasury spokesperson told Fortune agencies disclose equity interests “in different ways”
depending on the legal authority behind each investment.
Fortune also reports that several announced transactions—particularly a series of quantum computing agreements—remain closer to preliminary deal terms than completed ownership stakes.
Questions over oversight
Researchers tracking the government’s investments argue the public picture remains incomplete.
Jonathan Hillman, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, told Fortune:
“The deals that have been announced to date are only the tip of the iceberg.”
Hillman added:
“The real test will be whether Washington can build a system to effectively manage its growing portfolio of investments over the long run.”
According to the think tank, its own tracker currently represents the most comprehensive publicly available overview of Washington’s corporate holdings.
Intel investment draws added attention
Intel remains the government’s largest and most transparent investment.
Company filings show the Commerce Department is the shareholder under an agreement covering more than 433 million shares.
Not all of those shares have yet been transferred, however. Roughly two-thirds were delivered when the agreement closed, while the remaining portion is being held in escrow until Intel reaches milestones tied to a Pentagon semiconductor program.
Fortune also notes that ethics disclosures revealed investment accounts held in Donald Trump’s own name began purchasing Intel stock several months after the government’s investment helped drive the company’s share price sharply higher.
No allegations of insider trading have been made, and the White House has said the president’s assets are managed through a trust overseen by his children.
Calls for greater transparency
Budget experts say current federal accounting rules make it difficult to track how much taxpayers ultimately gain from these investments.
Unlike grants or loans, equity purchases are largely recorded as money leaving government accounts, while increases in the value of those holdings often do not appear in federal budget documents.
Previous government ownership programs, including the 2008 Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), operated under dedicated oversight mechanisms that required regular reporting to Congress.
Today’s investment portfolio has no comparable system.
Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, suggested the administration may have even broader ambitions when discussing the Intel deal, telling CNBC:
“It’s like a down payment on a sovereign wealth fund, which many countries have.”
