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The Trump administration is trading billions of dollars of taxpayer money for ownership stakes in companies. The unusual practice shows no sign of slowing.
Nov. 25, 2025, 5:01 a.m. ET
The Trump administration is snapping up ownership shares of private companies it deems essential to national security. It is an unusual new strategy that has already committed more than $10 billion in taxpayer funds and shows little sign of slowing.
The government’s growing portfolio of corporate ownership involves minority stakes, or the option to take them in the future, in at least nine companies involved in steel, minerals, nuclear energy and semiconductors, a New York Times analysis found. The deals were all struck in the past six months, with the bulk made in October and November.
New government stakes in private firms
| U.S. Steel Steel | N/A Cfius approval | “Golden share” |
| MP Materials Minerals | $400 million Defense Dept. | 7.5% stake, plus right to an additional 7.5% stake |
| Trilogy Metals Minerals | $35.6 million Defense Dept. | 10% stake, plus right to an additional 7.5% stake |
| Lithium Americas Minerals | $182 million in deferred debt service Energy Dept. | 5% stake in Lithium Americas and 5% stake in Thacker Pass joint venture |
| Intel Chips | $8.9 billion Commerce Dept. | 9.9% stake |
| Vulcan Elements Minerals | $50 million Commerce Dept. | $50 million equity |
| Vulcan Elements Minerals | $620 million Defense Dept. | Right to future stock purchase at set price |
| ReElement Technologies Minerals | $80 million Defense Dept. | Right to future stock purchase at set price |
| Westinghouse Nuclear energy | N/A Commerce Dept. | Option to take 8% stake |
Notes: In exchange for stakes, the government has offered companies a mix of grants and loans, as well as other types of approvals. The "golden share" in U.S. Steel is non-financial and does not give the government equity. The Westinghouse deal involves a brokered investment by Japan in the company. This chart excludes stakes taken by the Development Finance Corporation, an agency that has taken stakes in companies and funds under multiple administrations. Source: Company and government announcements. Keith Collins/The New York Times
The effort appears mostly driven by national security concerns, particularly a desire for the government to prop up strategic industries and lessen America’s reliance on foreign countries like China for key resources. Some officials are hopeful the equity stakes will generate a windfall for taxpayers, but the likelihood of that is unclear. Many of the companies are facing financial headwinds, and some could take years to become profitable.
The unusual government intervention into the private market is fueling some concerns, including the opacity of the process, the potential for favoritism, corruption and market distortions, along with the possible loss of taxpayer funds should the investments fail.
Aaron Bartnick, a fellow at Columbia University and a former Biden White House official, said there were serious questions about whether the government role in private industry would address national security vulnerabilities and deliver a return on taxpayer dollars.
