Hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin, one of Wall Street’s most prominent Republicans, expressed frustration about US President Donald Trump’s “anti-growth” tariff agenda and its impact on US economic growth at Thursday’s 2025 Forbes Iconoclast Summit.
The Citadel CEO, a billionaire supporter of Donald Trump and a megadonor to Republican candidates, criticised the US President and the ongoing global trade war: It’s hurting America’s standing in the world and eroding the nation’s brand, apart from ‘taking a toll’ on the US economy.
Ken Griffin on Trump tariffs and its impact
Griffin, founder of one of the largest hedge funds in the world, said that traders are concerned about parking their investments in the United States — particularly US Treasury bonds — because Trump’s tariffs have destroyed faith that America will remain a trusted and rational actor in global financial markets.
“The United States was more than just a nation. It’s a brand. It’s a universal brand, whether it’s our culture, our financial strength, our military strength …. America rose beyond just being a country,” Griffin said Wednesday at the Semafor World Economy Summit in Washington. “It was like an aspiration for most the world. And we’re eroding that brand right now.”
“Unfortunately, the last few months have been characterized by a set of policy decisions that have rendered a great deal of uncertainty, have called into question American exceptionalism,” Griffin, founder of the Citadel hedge fund and market maker Citadel Securities, told Forbes editor-at-large.
Citadel cits US growth estimates
Griffin said his firm cut in half its estimates of 2025 growth since Trump took office, explaining the tariffs have “taken their toll already on our economy.” “The administration's attempts to use tariffs comes at a dear price to the U.S. economy and comes at a dear price to the U.S. consumer,” added Griffin.
“Why are we aspiring to be the nation of the lowest cost and lowest paid workforce in the world? That makes no sense to me,” Griffin quipped about Trump’s push to onshore manufacturing of low-cost goods. Griffin said that shows Trump and his advisers have their work cut out for them to right the perceived wrongs of the damaging trade war.
Meanwhile, billionaire investment manager Ray Dalio had warned that the risks of US debt go beyond credit ratings amid the US government's mounting debt in the current economic scenario. The founder of one of the world's largest hedge funds said that regarding the US debt downgrade, credit ratings understate risks because they rate the risk of the government not paying its debt.
