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☆ George Soros' fund snapped up Tesla stock, boosting its stake by nearly 50% as Elon Musk's Twitter antics weighed on the automaker's shares
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Billionaire investor George Soros's family office loaded up on Tesla stock in the last quarter of 2022. Soros Fund Management grew its stake in the EV maker by nearly 50%, a SEC filing showed this week. Concerns about CEO Elon Musk's fueled a Q4 selloff in Tesla, but its share price has risen 58% in 2023. Soros Fund Management bought about 42,000 Tesla shares in the three months ending December 31, lifting its stake by 47% to around 132,000 shares, according to a 13F filing published Monday. Soros Fund Management also snapped up 500,000 call options on ARK's Innovation ETF – the Cathie Wood-managed fund that tumbled in 2022 but lists Tesla as its biggest holding.

☆ FTX has chased politicians like Nancy Pelosi to return donations given before the crypto giant's collapse. They now have a deadline of February 28 to pay.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

In total, FTX employees donated $90 million to politicians, per The New York Times, and the debtors are trying to claim that back to reimburse customers. After Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX's Bahamas company, Ryan Salame, donated $23 million – making him the 15th top donor in the US, per OpenSecrets. The lawyers handling FTX's bankruptcy first requested the donations be returned in December. But in January, CoinDesk reported that just five of the 196 politicians who received money from FTX said they had successfully returned it. CoinDesk reports that Vance donated the money to a non-profit, but FTX has warned that this "does not prevent the FTX debtors from seeking recovery."

☆ Prosecutor appointed by Trump Justice Department used claims from Russian intelligence to obtain emails from a George Soros aide: NYT
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

John Durham used Russian intelligence claims to obtain a US citizen's emails, per The New York Times. Durham was appointed by former Attorney General Bill Barr to examine the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation. But Durham pursued a dubious claim from Russia involving Hillary Clinton and an aide to George Soros. They "were said to make demonstrably inconsistent, inaccurate or exaggerated claims," the Times reported, "and some US analysts believed Russia may have deliberately seeded them with disinformation." As Russian intelligence analysts themselves had told it, Moscow had hacked Leonard Benardo, executive vice president of Soros' Open Society Foundations, and in doing so uncovered a plot at the highest level to sway the 2016 election.

☆ Inside Ken Griffin's rise to one of Wall Street's most powerful people, and why politics could be next
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +30 min

JB and I are not on speaking terms these days," said Ken Griffin, the billionaire hedge-fund manager, referring to JB Pritzker, the Democratic governor of Illinois. As Florida rolled back pandemic restrictions more quickly than Chicago, even more Citadel employees migrated south. Ken Griffin's hedge fund has had a run of eye-popping returns since 2020. Others worry that it gives Griffin's hedge fund an unfair advantage. Hundreds of Citadel employees, partners, and families gathered at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando Florida.

☆ Ron DeSantis just notched a win in court. But the judge says he still violated a prosecutor’s free speech rights.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Marc Caputo | Marc Caputo Is A Senior National Political Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +15 min

In a statement posted on Twitter, DeSantis' office lauded the ruling without addressing those nuances. By suspending Warren, DeSantis also elevated the Democrat’s political profile in his own party. And no one in Hillsborough County was charged with violating that state law when Warren was the county prosecutor. Court testimony from DeSantis administration officials showed that the abortion letter was the major cause of Warren's suspension. Abortion was the only issue mentioned in the first draft of DeSantis' suspension order.

☆ An Alabama 'election denier' is leading efforts in the state to withdraw from a national organization that combats voter fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Alabama's top elections official is withdrawing the state from a nonprofit known as ERIC. Founded in 2012, ERIC began as a collaboration by election officials in seven states, four of them Republican. A powerful outlierOfficials, including Republicans, have credited the organization with helping clean up their voter lists and prevent fraudulent votes. A former state legislator, Allen was dubbed an "election denier" by the States United Democracy Center, a bipartisan group that promotes election integrity, over his support for overturning the results of the 2020 election. With or without Alabama, he said, ERIC will continue to focus on "improving the accuracy of America's voter rolls and increasing access to voter registration for all eligible citizens."

☆ The Davos elite likes to make bold predictions. But they don't always get them right
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

George Soros, billionaire and founder of Soros Fund Management, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in Jan. 2016. It's an annual meeting where a global elite of business leaders, politicians and economists make bold predictions and try to set the agenda for the year ahead — but they don't always get it right. Nuclear warBillionaire investor George Soros warned during a speech at Davos in 2018 that the United States could be heading for a nuclear war with North Korea. "The United States is set on a course towards nuclear war by refusing to accept that [North] Korea has become a nuclear power," he said at the time. So far, the United States has avoided any military conflict with North Korea.

☆ Nonprofit financed by billionaire George Soros quietly donated $140 million to political causes in 2021
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Fabrice Coffrini | AFP | Getty ImagesA nonprofit financed by billionaire George Soros quietly donated $140 million to advocacy organizations and ballot initiatives in 2021, plus another $60 million to likeminded charities. The Open Society Policy Center also doled out $138 million to advocacy groups and causes in 2020. All of the nonprofits fall under Soros' Open Society Foundations network, which spans the globe. Both of those groups are run by the billionaire's son Alexander Soros, who also sits on the boards of the Open Society Institute and Open Society Policy Center. Emerson Morrow, a spokesman for America Votes told CNBC that funding from the Open Society Policy Center "has provided critical support for America Votes' mission."

☆ 10 money managers who quietly control the vast fortunes of Jeff Bezos, Sergey Brin, the Waltons, and other big-name billionaires
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +24 min

Many über-rich people don't outsource their wealth — they hire their own chief investment officers. He left SAC in 2005 for Dune Capital Management, but stayed in touch with Steve during his five-year term at the investment firm. Andrew oversees CPV's portfolio, which primarily comprises direct private investments such as Collectors Universe, a collectibles-authentication company, and the New York Mets. In 2011, Wildcat Capital Management was launched with Potter as president and chief investment officer. Since November 2021, Carland has also served as the interim chief investment officer for Builders Vision's asset arm.

When I first started investigating China’s top spy agency in 2020 for my book, “Spies and Lies: How China’s Greatest Covert Operations Fooled the World,” I thought espionage was its main game. In October, the Justice Department charged 13 people with plotting to covertly advance China’s interests in the United States. Several of those charged are allegedly officers of China’s Ministry of State Security. I soon realized that the Ministry of State Security’s covert influence operations have been at the forefront of its work to shape the world. Many countries, including the United States, are working to combat espionage but lack laws suited to tackling covert influence operations.

The answer is simple, according to more than a dozen Washington insiders, FTX employees, and crypto industry observers who spoke with Insider. I don't think anyone believed that he was going to fund candidates who were, quote unquote, committed to ending pandemics who were also hostile to the crypto industry." Alex Wong/Getty ImagesRebuffed by the SEC, Bankman-Fried turned his attention to Congress. "It's not that he was welcoming regulation," says the senior figure in the crypto industry who attended meetings with Bankman-Fried. But while Bankman-Fried was busy wooing Washington, FTX was about to become Exhibit A in the case for more effective oversight of the crypto industry.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says he's the Republicans' third-biggest donor, but used 'dark money' to avoid media criticism
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

But the FTX founder said he gave just as much to Republicans using "dark money." He said he did so to avoid media criticism from "liberal" reporters who would "freak the f*** out." "I've been their third-biggest Republican donor this year as well," he said. "They're all secretly liberal and I didn't want to have that fight, so I made all the Republican ones dark." Once the richest person under 30 with a net worth of $26 billion, Bankman-Fried told Axios on Monday that he's now down to his last $100,000.

☆ FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried donated $40 million to political campaigns leading into the midterms, leaving some concerned about crypto's place in Washington, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Bethany Biron | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX execs donated a total of $70 million to political campaigns in 18 months, according to OpenSecrets. Bankman-Fried himself donated $40 million to mostly liberal efforts, while fellow exec Ryan Salame gave $23 million primarily to Republicans. He was the second highest donor for liberal efforts behind George Soros and the sixth highest donor overall. Meanwhile, Ryan Salame, a fellow FTX senior executive, donated more than $23 million primarily to Republican candidates and efforts. "Frankly, everyone should always be skeptical of things like this," Bankman-Fried said of political donations.

☆ Vegan canapes and fat donations: How Sam Bankman-Fried won Washington before he lost everything
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Alex-Seitz-Wald-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Alex Seitz-Wald | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +13 min

Everybody was trying to get in,” said one source close to the Bankman-Frieds’ political operation who requested anonymity to speak candidly. Attempts to contact Sam Bankman-Fried for this article were unsuccessful. Sam Bankman-Fried’s mentor and the spiritual leader of Effective Altruism has disowned him. Sam Bankman-Fried is a Democrat, and he spent at least $40 million supporting the party. Some of the biggest recipients of Bankman-Fried’s money did not respond to NBC News when asked about donations they received.

☆ The bulldog lawyer who helped recoup billions from MF Global's bankruptcy says investors burned by FTX may not be so lucky
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | Alex Morrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The bulldog attorney and hedge fund manager says he sees similarities between MF Global and FTX, but also thinks it could be tougher for FTX customers to get their money back. Koutoulas' behind-the-napkin analysis is that FTX customers stand to recoup just 10 cents on the dollar in bankruptcy. But MF Global was also in a much stronger position financially when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Halloween 2011. Of course, that does little to help FTX customers who were wiped out. "MF Global went bankrupt.

The explosive demise of crypto giant FTX, led by billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, may have an outsized impact on politics — snuffing out the wealth of a budding potential Democratic megadonor. Bankman-Fried was the second-largest Democratic donor this election cycle by a longshot, according to the most recently available campaign finance data from the Federal Election Commission, second only to philanthropist George Soros. The only Democratic donor to give more last cycle was philanthropist George Soros, whose $129 million dwarfed Bankman-Fried's. In fact, Bankman-Fried about as much as Democrats this cycle than each of the next-largest Democratic donors combined — Illinois businessman Fred Eychaner and Indiana philanthropist Deborah Simon. He had said his goal was to "do this in a bipartisan way," but this cycle had given 90% of his money toward Democratic causes.

☆ Factbox: How Wall St and billionaires have donated to U.S. elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( John Mccrank | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Prior to the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United ruling, which struck down limits on political contributions by corporations or unions, political contributions of billionaires made up around 3% of overall political contributions, she said. Griffin said in a statement: "I hope that my political engagement will help to protect the American Dream. * Crypto-billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX was the sixth-largest donor, at $39.8 million with the vast majority going to help Democrats. * Elliott Management founder Paul Singer spent $19.7 million to support Republicans, making him the 15th-largest donor. * Renaissance Technologies founder Jim Simons, together with Marilyn Simons, were the 20th-largest donors, spending nearly $16 million to help Democrats.

☆ The second largest Republican mega-donor stands behind DeSantis for president, saying it's time to 'move on' from Trump, Politico reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin said it was time to "move on" from Former President Donald Trump. The conservative donor put his support behind Governor Ron DeSantis instead. Neither Trump nor DeSantis has confirmed whether or not they will run for president in 2024. During a campaign rally in Pennsylvania Saturday, Trump debuted a nickname for DeSantis, which he often does for political rivals: Ron DeSanctimonious. But on Sunday, Trump endorsed DeSantis, setting the beef aside ahead of the midterms.

☆ American billionaires spent a record $880 million on the U.S. midterm elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Robert Frank | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

America's billionaires spent a record $880 million on the U.S. midterm elections so far, with most of their spending favoring Republicans, according to a new report. They have given a total of $3.5 million to a single-candidate super PAC in Wisconsin supporting GOP Sen. Ron Johnson. A relative newcomer to the billionaire political class is Sam Bankman-Fried, the 30-year-old crypto mogul. He donated $40 million this cycle, most of it to a super PAC he created called Protect Our Future. Hedge-fund billionaire Stephen Mandel of Lone Pine Capital has spent $17.7 million on Democratic groups, including the super PAC Future Forward.

And economic policy is only gradually being taped back together before the BoE meets again. It's also pulled the implied peak Bank rate next year some 150bp lower to 4.75% over the same period - back below the assumed 'terminal rate' at the U.S. Federal Reserve. "We see the risks skewed towards the BoE sounding dovish this week and ultimately "underdelivering" versus current pricing," the Deutsche analyst wrote. Central bank rate hikes and SterlingReuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsThe opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters. by Mike Dolan, Twitter: @reutersMikeD; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Impeaching Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Progressive district attorneys have presided over a resurgence in urban crime, and the demand for a political correction is rising. The latest DA in the dock is Philadelphia’s Larry Krasner , and on Wednesday Republicans in the state House filed articles of impeachment against him. Mr. Krasner won election in 2017 with the help of George Soros , and crime has surged on his watch. On Monday a bipartisan House committee faulted the district attorney and his policies for contributing to “a catastrophic rise in violent crime at the expense of public safety.”

☆ Billionaire Ronald Lauder gives $1 million to GOP group supporting state candidates who questioned 2020 election results
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

A representative for the Republican State Leadership Committee did not return a request for comment. The Concord Fund, which previously spent millions of dollars on ads backing Trump's judicial nominees, gave $1.5 million to the Republican State Leadership Committee in September. The Republican State Leadership Committee is considered a tax exempt politically active group under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code. The Republican State Leadership Committee is supporting dozens of candidates running to become secretaries of state, lieutenant governors, state legislators and judges on state courts. In this year's state legislative races, the Republican State Leadership Committee has bolstered some candidates who raised doubts about the 2020 election results.

☆ An Elon Musk superfan made the Forbes 400 list after snapping up Tesla stock during the pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

An Elon Musk superfan joined the Forbes 400 list for the first time this year. Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyAn Elon Musk superfan just joined the Forbes 400 list after going all in on Tesla stock. What makes KoGuan's wealth so unusual is how he amassed it: by snapping up Tesla stock during the early days of the pandemic. In late 2020, KoGuan reportedly paid about $46 million for a Singapore penthouse owned by vacuum-cleaner tycoon James Dyson. At the start of 2020, Tesla's stock was trading at about $30 a share.

☆ Stanley Druckenmiller sees 'hard landing' in 2023 with a possible deeper recession than many expect
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"Our central case is a hard landing by the end of '23," Druckenmiller said at CNBC's Delivering Alpha Investor Summit in New York City Wednesday. I don't know the timing but certainly by the end of '23. Druckenmiller believes the extraordinary quantitative easing and zero interest rates over the past decade created an asset bubble. "All those factors that cause a bull market, they're not only stopping, they're reversing every one of them," Druckenmiller said. To me, the risk reward of owning assets doesn't make a lot of sense," Druckenmiller said.

☆ Alex Jones' billion-dollar judgement: The conspiracy theorist has turned career-ending setbacks into profit windfalls, but this could be too much to overcome
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Ashley Collman | Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

Robbie Parker was later falsely called a crisis actor, and the Parkers are among those who sued Alex Jones for defamation. Longtime informal adviser to Donald Trump, Roger Stone (right), and and Alex Jones (left) speak to reporters in December 2018. Picture showing a computer screen displaying the Twitter account of Far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones taken on August 15, 2018 in Washington DC. "Alex Jones is likely to continue being Alex Jones, which means he's likely to try all kinds of shenanigans to avoid accountability," said Holt. "The money awarded in damages does not repair what Alex Jones has done to those parents' lives, but it could be a step towards dismantling the toxic empire that Alex Jones has built around his brand."

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