Blackstone CEO Schwarzman to back Trump, Axios reports

Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman will support Donald Trump as the former U.S. president seeks to return to the White House, Axios reported on Friday.

Schwarzman, one of the biggest political donors on Wall Street, plans to donate to Trump and various Republican Senate candidates, the report said, citing a statement from the investment management company’s CEO.

Long viewed as a Trump ally, Schwarzman had announced in 2022 he would not back the former president, saying it was time for the Republican Party to turn to a new generation of leaders. He did not back any candidate in this year’s nominating contests.

But concerns about economic, immigration and foreign policies under Democratic President Joe Biden, along with “the dramatic rise of antisemitism” in the country, drove his decision to endorse Trump, Schwarzman said in the statement.

Before Friday’s report, Schwarzman had in March donated $375,000 to Buckeye Values, a super PAC supporting Ohio Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno which subsequently staged Trump rallies, campaign finance records show.

Blackstone did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.