Trump raised record-breaking $240 million for inauguration, filings reveal

President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee raised $239 million for the festivities surrounding his swearing-in this year, more than doubling his previous record and far surpassing any other presidential inauguration in US history.

The figure, disclosed in a filing late Sunday with the Federal Election Commission, dwarfed the $107 million raised for Trump’s first inauguration in 2017 and nearly quadrupled the $62 million collected by President Joe Biden for his pandemic-era swearing-in in 2021.

The committee’s biggest donor was poultry giant Pilgrim’s Pride, based in Colorado, which contributed $5 million. Cryptocurrency firm Ripple Labs followed closely with nearly $4.9 million, while trading platform Robinhood gave $2 million.

The filing shows a clear pattern of high-value donors receiving key appointments within the Trump administration.

Arkansas financier Warren Stephens, nominated as US ambassador to the United Kingdom, donated $4 million.

Jared Isaacman, awaiting Senate confirmation to lead NASA, contributed $2 million. Melissa Argyros, nominated as envoy to Latvia, also gave $2 million.

Other donors include Linda McMahon, now serving as education secretary, who gave $1 million, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who contributed $250,000.

Inaugural committees are prohibited from accepting foreign donations, but there are no caps on the size of contributions they can receive.

This has led to a growing trend of corporations writing seven-figure cheques. Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos each donated $1 million and were seated prominently at the Capitol Rotunda for the January 20 ceremony.

Max Stier, president of the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, criticised the soaring fundraising numbers. “It’s not actually a good thing to see that number go up,” he said. “It’s an indication of a mechanism for moneyed interest to direct cash to a newly elected president to curry favour.”

The Trump Vance Inaugural Committee reported raising nearly $245.3 million for the January festivities, returning just over $6 million to donors, according to a new filing with the Federal Election Commission.

The report highlights how over 60% of the committee’s funds came from more than 130 donations of $1 million or more — a reflection of the growing financial influence surrounding US presidential inaugurations.

Sunday marked 90 days since the inauguration — the legal deadline to disclose individual donations over $200. However, the committee is not required to report how it spent the funds or reveal plans for any remaining money, offering only a partial view of its financial activity.

A committee spokesperson did not respond to questions regarding expenditures or unused funds.

Sources close to Trump’s fundraising operations have previously indicated that surplus funds may be directed toward a planned presidential library. In one example, a $15 million defamation settlement reached with ABC News last year allocated proceeds to a "presidential foundation and museum."

Among individual donors contributing $1 million were OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, hedge fund executive Paul Singer, and Miriam Adelson, a major Republican donor and widow of casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson.

The donor list also includes corporations with business interests before the federal government. US Steel, awaiting a Trump administration decision on its potential acquisition by Japan’s Nippon Steel, contributed just over $100,000.

Chipmaker Nvidia, affected by export restrictions to China, donated $1 million. Several crypto firms, seeking relief from Biden-era regulation, also made large contributions.

Steve Kerrigan, who led both of President Barack Obama’s inaugural committees and helped organise Biden’s 2021 ceremony, said the sums raised by Trump far exceed what is necessary. He noted Obama’s first inauguration collected around $54 million — a figure he said adequately funded a much larger programme of official events.

Trump’s second inauguration included three official balls, an arena rally in Washington on the eve of the swearing-in, and a fireworks display at his golf club in Sterling, Virginia.

Kerrigan and advocacy groups such as Public Citizen have renewed calls for greater transparency in inaugural fundraising.

A bill introduced this year by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto would require detailed spending disclosures, ban the personal use of funds, and ensure leftover money goes to IRS-recognised charities.

Previous efforts to tighten rules around inaugural fundraising have failed. Trump’s 2017 inaugural committee was the subject of an investigation by the Washington, D.C. attorney general, resulting in a $750,000 settlement over alleged excessive payments for event space at a Trump-owned hotel.

Both the Trump Organization and the committee denied wrongdoing, saying the settlement was agreed to avoid the costs of prolonged litigation.