How Trump vs. Harris is playing out on Wall Street ahead of the debate

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Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.

RONDA CHURCHILL/AFP via Getty Images. NATALIE BEHRING/AFP via Getty Images.

Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are about to face off in their first debate.
Wall Street will be listening closely for the candidates’ views on the economy, taxation, and more.
See who financial industry leaders are putting their money behind and why.

The US presidential election is always important, but this year the stakes may be especially high.

That’s because the major candidates — former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris — are on opposite ends of the spectrum on many fundamental issues. The outcome, therefore, could have far-reaching consequences on people’s lives and the economy, Richard Haass, a former president of the Council on Foreign Relations, said.

“This is one of those rare elections where the differences probably outweigh the similarities, and that’s why it’s such a consequential election here at home for American democracy and also in the world for American foreign policy,” Haass, a senior counselor to the investment bank Centerview Partners, said in a recent conversation with Goldman Sachs titled “2024: The year of elections.”

For Wall Street bankers, traders, and executives, the election also stands to affect their jobs and business prospects, from US trade relations to demand for megamergers. Trump is expected to be good for cryptocurrency, for example, but bad for trade with China — and the list goes on.

Wall Street billionaires, therefore, are placing their bets, literally, by contributing money to the candidates of their choice.

To see where Wall Street’s top leaders stand ahead of Tuesday’s debate, Business Insider scoured the Federal Election Commission website for individual donations from Wall Street leaders between 2023 and August. The data showed donations from leaders across investment banking, private equity, and hedge funds, including Blackstone and Evercore. BI, however, found zero donations to either candidate from the heads of large, publicly traded investment banks, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citi, Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley.

BI’s FEC data search may not include some more recent donations because the agency uploads new data monthly. Also, donations made to Harris’ campaign before July represent donations to President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign that were rolled over to Harris after Biden dropped out of the race. We will update this list when new data becomes available.

See below to find which Wall Street tycoons are voting for which candidate in 2024 presidential election, in alphabetical order:

Roger Altman

Title: Founder and senior chair of the investment bank Evercore

What he has said: Altman, who worked for the US Treasury under the Carter and Clinton administrations, told CNBC in July that he supported Harris.

Donations: In March, Altman donated $100,000 to the Harris Action Fund and $50,000 to the same fund in 2023. Last year, he also donated $25,000 to the Harris Victory Fund and $6,600 to Harris for President.

Blair Effron

Title: Partner and cofounder of Centerview Partners

What he has said: A supporter of Harris during her 2020 presidential run, Effron has praised her leadership and called her the right candidate for the 21st century.

Donations: In March, Effron donated $100,000 to what is now the Harris Victory Fund. The FEC’s website also shows several donations in 2023, including $55,000 to the Harris Victory Fund and $6,600 to Harris for President.

Jon Gray

Blackstone President and Chief Operating Officer Jonathan Gray — Jon Gray.

Drew Angerer/Staff/Getty Images

Title: Blackstone’s president and chief operating officer

What he has said: Gray, a former Biden fundraiser, donated to Harris’ campaign after Biden dropped out of the race in July.

Donations: Gray donated $413,000 to the Harris Action Fund at the end of July, a person with knowledge of the contribution said. He has also made several donations to Biden’s campaign via funds that have since been transferred to Harris, including $50,000 in 2023 to the Harris Action Fund and $6,600 via two donations of $3,300 to Harris for President.

Ken Griffin

Title: CEO and founder of the hedge fund Citadel and founder of the market maker Citadel Securities

What he has said: Griffin supported Trump’s rival Nikki Haley in the Republican primaries and told Bloomberg he would wait to see whom Trump picked for his running mate before deciding whether to put his billions of dollars behind the GOP nominee.

Donations: He has given $0 to the campaigns of Trump or Harris since 2023, according to the FEC’s website.

Marc Lasry

Man smiling at press — Marc Lasry.

Aurelien Meunier// Getty Images

Title: Chair, CEO, and cofounder of the hedge fund Avenue Capital

What he has said: Lasry was a fundraiser for Harris during her 2020 presidential run.

Donations: In March, Lasry gave $100,000 to the Harris Action Fund, following a $25,000 to the same fund last year. In 2023 he made several donations to Biden that have since been rolled to Harris, including $6,600 to Harris for President, $15,000 to the Harris Victory Fund, and $25,000 to the Harris Action Fund.

Howard Lutnick

Title: Chair and CEO of the financial-services firm Cantor Fitzgerald

What he has said: Lutnick, a Trump fundraiser, has applauded the former president on the social-media platform X, citing his “supportive stance on #Bitcoin” and calling Trump “a great friend and a great man.”

Donations: In April, Lutnick donated $413,000 to the Trump 47 Committee.

Omeed Malik

Title: Founder and CEO of the merchant bank Farvahar Partners

What he has said: Omeed has cited Trump’s economic policies and what he says is the weaponization of the rule of law on the left.

Donations: In March, Malik contributed $6,600 to Donald J. Trump for President 2024 via two $3,300 donations. He contributed $31,600 to the Trump 47 Committee across two donations this year.

Peter May

Title: Trian Fund Management’s president and founding partner

What he has said: May appears to have let his money do the talking.

Donations: May donated $25,000 in June to the Harris Victory Fund and $6,600 through two $3,300 donations to Harris for President.

Robert Mercer

Title: Former CEO of the hedge fund Renaissance Technologies

What he has said: Mercer was a big supporter of Trump in 2016 and reportedly played a role in getting Steve Bannon, the former head of Breitbart News, which Mercer partly owned, into the Trump White House.

Donations: In March, Mercer donated $814,399 to the Trump 47 Committee and $6,600 to Donald J. Trump for President 2024 via two $3,300 donations.

John Paulson

Title: Founder of Paulson & Co., a hedge fund turned family office

What he has said: Paulson has said he supports Trump’s policies on energy, border security, and trade. He has held a number of fundraisers for Trump, and the former president has floated his name for secretary of the Treasury.

Donations: Paulson has made numerous donations to Trump PACs over the years, including $806,300 to the Trump 47 Committee in March.

Nelson Peltz

Title: Founding partner of the hedge fund Trian Partners

What he has said: Peltz disavowed Trump after the January 6, 2021, riots at the US Capitol but told the Financial Times in March that he would probably vote for him again, citing Biden’s fitness for office.

Donations: He has given $0 to the campaigns of Trump or Harris since 2023, according to the FEC’s website.

Peter Orszag

Title: CEO of the investment bank Lazard

What he has said: Orszag, who was a director of the US Office of Management and Budget under President Barack Obama, told CNBC in July that he supported Harris.

Donations: In June, Orszag donated $100,000 via two $50,000 donations to the Harris Victory Fund and $6,600 via two $3,300 donations to Harris for President.

Steve Schwarzman

Title: Chair and cofounder of the private-equity giant Blackstone

What he has said: Schwarzman in May issued a statement putting his weight behind Trump. In it, Schwarzman cited the “dramatic rise in antisemitism,” as well as the economy, immigration, and other policies that he said were “taking the country in the wrong direction.”

Donations: In May, Schwarzman donated $419,600 to the Trump 47 Committee and $6,600 to Donald J. Trump for President 2024 via two $3,300 donations.

David Shaw

Title: Founder of hedge fund DE Shaw

What he has said: Shaw has served on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology for both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

Donations: Shaw made several donations to Biden in 2023 that have since rolled to Harris, including $295,700 to what is now the Harris Action Fund and $6,600 to Harris for President.

Paul Singer

Title: Elliott Management’s founder, president, co-CEO, and co-chief investment officer

What he has said: Singer was a big donor to Trump’s rival Haley and has criticized Trump’s trade policy, but he reportedly met with Trump over the summer to discuss a donation.

Donations: In June, Singer donated $419,600 to the Trump 47 Committee and $6,600 to Donald J. Trump for President 2024.

Joan Solotar

Title: Blackstone’s global head of private-wealth solutions

What she has said: Solotar appears to have let her money do the talking.

Donations: In May, she gave $25,000 to what is now the Harris Action Fund and $6,600 through two donations of $3,300 to Harris for President.

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