During her time in public service, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s private family investments included stock in President Donald Trump’s social media company, along with shares of defense contractors, oil companies and tech giants, according to a new ethics document reviewed by The Washington Sun.
Leavitt disclosed between $1,001 and $15,000 worth of Trump Media & Technology Group stock, per the document, which reflects her financial holdings and those of her husband, Nicholas Riccio, as of Dec. 31. (Filers are only required to list the value of their assets in broad ranges.)
Leavitt also reported stock shares of similar value in defense contractors Boeing and RTX, formerly known as Raytheon; oil companies ExxonMobil and Occidental Petroleum; tech companies Advanced Micro Devices, Nvidia and Serve Robotics; financial platform Robinhood Markets; and steelmaker United States Steel.
Her federal disclosure does not specify whether she or her husband individually or jointly own the disclosed stocks. The White House said Tuesday that Leavitt’s husband owned the stocks.
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Leavitt resigned from her position last month. While serving as press secretary, she frequently addressed questions about the oil, tech and defense industries and occasionally addressed specific companies, such as when she spoke in November about Nvidia’s ability to sell computer chips to China.
She also disclosed between $50,001 and $100,000 worth of stock in Tesla, the electric vehicle and solar panel company led by Elon Musk, who for part of 2025 oversaw Trump’s agency-slashing Department of Government Efficiency.
Leavitt periodically spoke of Tesla during her tenure as press secretary, including in March, when she defended the company, its stock and Trump.
“The president supports an American-made company, like Tesla, who produces a very good product for the American people, which was beloved by the American people — particularly Democrats — until Elon Musk decided to vote for Donald Trump,” Leavitt said at the time.
Federal law and regulations generally prohibit executive branch employees from “participating in an official capacity in particular matters in which [they have] a personal financial interest.” There are exceptions and exemptions, including an exemption for investments of a “de minimis” value of $15,000 or less.
“Our office regularly works with appointees to provide ethics guidance and help ensure compliance with applicable federal ethics laws and regulations,” White House counsel Will Scharf told The Sun. “In this case, we believe Karoline Leavitt complied with those requirements and have no further concerns.”
Office of Government Ethics spokesperson Patrick Shepherd declined to comment, noting that his office “is committed to transparency and citizen oversight of government” but “does not respond to questions about specific individuals.”
Leavitt also disclosed that her husband owned three real estate companies, but did not provide details about their value or how much income they generated.
Federal law requires high-ranking presidential administration members to file annual personal financial disclosures to defend against conflicts of interest and enhance public transparency. The disclosures must include financial activity for the filer, his or her spouse and any dependent children.
Leavitt, who says she is now working for Trump-controlled super PAC MAGA Inc., did not sign a formal ethics agreement detailing how she would avoid financial conflicts of interest during her time in government. While such ethics agreements are commonplace for many high-ranking presidential appointees, including Cabinet secretaries, White House staffers are generally exempt.
Trump himself has disclosed thousands of stock and bond trades made in his name this year, including 1,156 trades in July alone, according to federal records.
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