Financial disclosures released last week show hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of trades in Eli Lilly made on Donald Trump’s behalf earlier this year, as the administration expanded access to GLP-1 obesity treatments. The filings also list thousands of o
For months, the payments on paper were still hidden behind paperwork. Then the disclosures landed last week—showing that as the US government pushed new access initiatives for GLP-1 weight-loss medicines, Eli Lilly appeared among the biggest beneficiaries.
The forms say that in the first quarter of 2026. several thousand trades were executed on Donald Trump’s behalf involving stocks and bonds. with a cumulative value reported as between $220m and about $750m. The filings also included securities linked to some of the largest companies in the US. including Apple. Boeing. Goldman Sachs. Meta Platforms. Microsoft and Nvidia.
Among those trades were seven acquisitions of shares in Eli Lilly worth up to $680,000 between 6 January and the end of March.
The timeline matters because federal initiatives during and just after the same period moved in Lilly’s direction—expanding access to GLP-1 drugs that are central to its obesity business. A pilot program described by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is set to expand access to GLP-1 medications for Medicare patients. including Lilly’s Foundayo and Zepbound KwikPen. Separate moves also focused on lowering drug costs through a direct-to-consumer website called TrumpRx.
KFF Health News highlighted the transactions and tied them to the government actions. In February, the administration unveiled TrumpRx, described as a direct-to-consumer drug sales website aimed at lowering prescription drug costs. A White House fact sheet said that in the early months TrumpRx featured medications made by the first five manufacturers that struck pricing deals with the administration. including Eli Lilly. and directed patients to LillyDirect. the drug company’s telemedicine service. The White House later announced an expansion of TrumpRx earlier this week. saying it would now feature more than 600 generic medications.
Still, the filings do not show the administration’s moves were chosen to benefit the president’s portfolio—at least not in the way the Trump Organization frames the process.
The Trump Organization denied that the president “plays any role” in selecting the stocks in his investment portfolio. It also did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Eli Lilly. the US Department of Health and Human Services. the White House. and the Trump Organization. which were not immediately available.
A spokesperson for the Trump Organization told Reuters that the president’s “investment holdings are maintained exclusively through fully discretionary accounts independently managed by third-party financial institutions with sole and exclusive authority over all investment decisions.” The statement added that trades are handled through “automated investment processes and systems administered by those institutions. ” and insisted that “neither President Trump. his family nor the Trump Organization plays any role in selecting. directing or approving specific investments.” The spokesperson said they “receive no advance notice of trading activity and provide no input regarding investment decisions or portfolio management of any kind.”.
The disclosures also arrive amid a broader wave of scrutiny over Trump’s wealth. Over the last year. attention has grown on his family’s expanding wealth. including from recent real estate and cryptocurrency ventures—while many Americans continue to feel financial strain as US inflation remains high and fuel costs still climb.
Days before the trading disclosures were released. Trump was asked whether Americans’ financial situation was motivating him to make a deal to end the war in Iran. He responded: “Not even a little bit.” He added: “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. ” and said. “I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon. That’s all.”.
The question raised by the new filings isn’t about whether Eli Lilly’s products were targeted by government policy—because the policy rollout is described in federal initiatives and related reporting. It is about how close the timing appears between the administration’s effort to expand access to GLP-1 weight-loss drugs and trades in Lilly shares made on the president’s behalf.
The Financial Times reported that the number of transactions disclosed last week “far exceeds” Trump’s trading activity during the first year of his second term.
Donald Trump Eli Lilly GLP-1 Foundayo Zepbound KwikPen TrumpRx LillyDirect Medicare Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Medicare patients financial disclosures Trump Organization
So they’re basically betting on meds and calling it “policy.”
I don’t even know what TrumpRx is but if they’re expanding GLP-1 access then how is it a secret? Feels like rich people always win somehow. Also Lilly is already everywhere.
Wait… these filings say trades were on Trump’s behalf, right? But it’s like, are they saying the government helped Lilly and then Trump made money off it? That’s what I think I read. The Apple/Boeing/etc part is confusing though like why are those names even there.
GLP-1 obesity drugs have been in the news forever, so I’m not shocked. But $220m to $750m? That range alone is wild. I saw something about Medicare patients and thought that meant everyone gets those shots now, but apparently it’s a pilot thing. Still, sounds like “helping” one company while pretending it’s about saving people money.