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Donald Trump Jr. will not take a role in the White House, opting instead for VC firm 1789 Capital.
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The company, co-founded by Omeed Malik, funds conservative causes such as Tucker Carlson’s media company.
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The Florida company is against ESG. The focus is on “EIG” or entrepreneurship, innovation and growth.
The venture capital firm that Donald Trump Jr. is reportedly joining is eschewing investments that drive social and environmental issues and instead focusing on what it calls “EIG,” or entrepreneurship, innovation and growth.
The Palm Beach, Florida-based company called 1789 Capital — the U.S. Constitution took effect this year — has invested in Tucker Carlson’s new conservative media company Substack and BlinkRx, a prescription startup.
The president-elect’s eldest son — who played an active role in Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and is now part of his transition team — told a group of supporters at a conference earlier this week that he would join 1789 as a partner, The New York Times first reported reported. Several people familiar with the matter also told Bloomberg about Trump Jr.’s plans.
The company was founded in 2022 by Omeed Malik – a former Bank of America executive who also founded boutique investment bank Farvahar Partners – along with author and investor Christopher Buskirk.
According to the company’s website, Malik, who once co-hosted a Trump fundraiser that raised more than $10 million, serves as president and Buskirk as chief investment officer. Both Buskirk and Malik donated to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, the Republican National Committee, and other conservative causes and candidates, political donation records show.
The company describes itself as “anti-ESG” – an acronym for companies that commit to certain principles in the areas of the environment, social justice and corporate governance. One of 1789’s areas of interest is companies or industries that have faced negative impacts from ESG, the website says. She also focuses on what she calls deglobalization, building an economy parallel to the traditional one and disrupting industries that she says are burdened by excessive bureaucracy.
Like 1789 Capital, Trump Jr. has long been a proponent of the parallel economy, also known as the “patriot economy,” a term MAGA conservatives use for companies that align with their traditional values.
And Trump Jr.’s connection to Malik, the president of 1789 Capital, includes the two’s mutual support for a parallel economic platform called PublicSquare.
Both Malik and Trump Jr. were investors and vocal supporters of PublicSquare, an Amazon-like online shopping marketplace that bills itself as a place that connects Americans with “businesses that value life, family and freedom.” To use the platform, companies must commit to PublicSquare’s core values, which include the “sanctity of every life,” “the unity of the family,” “liberty and truth,” and adherence to the U.S. Constitution.
Malik and Trump Jr. rang the New York Stock Exchange’s ceremonial opening bell together on the day the company goes public in 2023, Time magazine reported at the time. Malik did not respond to a request for comment from BI.
As for 1789 Capital’s own investments, the company donated $15 million to the Tucker Carlson Network, the conservative commentator and former Fox News host’s new media venture, according to VC database PitchBook.
On its website, the company does not promote its specific investments, but offers a broad list of industries it is interested in, including consumer, fintech, healthcare, B2B SaaS, technology-enabled services, software, infrastructure, energy and special situations.
Representatives for Trump Jr. through the Trump Organization and the Trump Transition Team did not respond to a request for comment from BI. Buskirk also did not respond to BI’s inquiries, nor did the company’s chief operating officer, Jordan Cohen.
Read the original article on Business Insider
