Wall Street’s billionaires are not accustomed to finding themselves sidelined. Yet, that is their reality as President Trump continues to disregard their requests to reconsider his tariff strategy, which they are concerned could jeopardize the economy.
As stock market losses escalate, corporate leaders have employed every strategy possible—phone calls, social media outreach, and even a typically reserved shareholder letter—to persuade Mr. Trump to rethink his plans.
Right after the president unveiled his most extensive set of tariffs last week, top executives from leading banks, including Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, held a private meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, organized by a lobbying organization in Washington. However, Mr. Lutnick remained unconvinced to change his stance, according to three individuals familiar with the meeting.
Over the weekend, major donors to Mr. Trump’s reelection campaign attempted a different strategy, reaching out to Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to make their case. However, these attempts also yielded no results.
By Monday, hedge fund billionaires—many of whom had previously been vocal supporters of Mr. Trump’s second term—were publicly expressing their concerns.
“The global economy is being adversely affected due to flawed calculations,” hedge fund manager William A. Ackman tweeted Monday morning. He insisted, “The President’s advisors must recognize their mistake before April 9th and adjust course before the President makes a significant error.”
Others joined in, urging for a more robust response.
Andrew Hall, a billionaire oil trader critical of Mr. Trump in the past, praised Mr. Ackman on Instagram for vocally opposing tariffs as a Trump supporter. “At least he’s willing to reevaluate his stance and call out this foolishness,” Mr. Hall remarked about Mr. Ackman. “Where are the other ‘financial luminaries’? Why aren’t they taking a stand?”
Some have begun to speak out, albeit more cautiously and sporadically.
Mr. Dimon, the head of JPMorgan, entered the discussion on Monday with a letter to investors stating that the tariffs could undermine consumer and investor confidence and impede economic growth.
While Mr. Dimon had previously shown some support for tariffs shortly after Mr. Trump’s election, he refrained from warning of an imminent downturn, mentioning that the current situation is “leading many to contemplate a heightened likelihood of recession.”
Laurence D. Fink, chairman of the investment giant BlackRock, adopted a more direct approach during a speech on Monday at the Economic Club of New York, stating that “the economy is deteriorating as we speak.”
In his initial public comments regarding the tariffs, Mr. Fink predicted that a broad array of consumers would bear the burden of increased prices, mentioning Barbie dolls as an example of items likely to see a price hike.
“Most C.E.O.s I speak with would likely assert that we are currently experiencing a recession,” he conveyed to the audience.
The current situation has astonished financiers who have historically had direct access to decision-makers in both political parties. The dissonance is particularly notable since during Mr. Trump’s first term, he often celebrated stock market achievements as signs of success.
“I doubt Wall Street can sway the president’s decision,” Robert Wolf, a former chairman of UBS Americas, expressed. “But I hope that his contributors and friends from Mar-a-Lago are candid with him about this misguided strategy.”
For a moment on Monday morning, it appeared that Wall Street had made an impression on Mr. Trump. A report suggesting he might pause his tariffs led to significant fluctuations in the stock market, which shifted from losses to gains.
However, after the White House refuted the report and Mr. Trump reaffirmed his dedication to the tariffs, the S&P 500 closed the day down by another 0.2 percent, ultimately finishing nearly 18 percent lower than its mid-February peak, teetering on the brink of a bear market.
A spokesperson for the White House, Kush Desai, stated, “The Trump administration maintains regular dialogues with business leaders, industry associations, and everyday Americans, particularly regarding significant policy choices like the President’s reciprocal tariff actions.
“Nonetheless, the only special interest influencing President Trump’s decisions,” Mr. Desai added, “is the utmost interest of the American populace—such as addressing the national emergency caused by our nation’s chronic trade deficits.”
The market downturn has raised alarms on Wall Street, as a stable market is essential for corporate deal-making and allows banks to lend to businesses and consumers without concerns over defaults.
With the market declining at an unprecedented rate reminiscent of the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, when normal life came to a halt, Wall Street executives are scrutinizing their clients and investments for indications of trouble.
According to a source familiar with the plans, a prominent investment bank was assessing whether it would need to write down the value of its multi-billion dollar loans to investment-grade companies—those generally considered to be secure investments—prior to disclosing its public earnings results. Earnings reports from banks are set to begin on Friday.
A prevalent topic of discussion has been the private loan market, which has expanded significantly since the last major financial crisis in 2008 and typically involves financing more risky enterprises. Private lenders have long maintained that any distress in their system would be manageable, yet these firms have never encountered a contraction of this scale.
Although the concerns of Wall Street executives may often seem disconnected from those of average Americans, the rationale they are presenting to Mr. Trump emphasizes how his trade policies pose a risk not only to the stock market but to the broader economy.
The financial crisis of 2008, triggered by a decline in obscure mortgage bonds, resulted in a housing market collapse that persisted for years. Many American companies depend on sales in nations threatening retaliatory tariffs.
In discussions with Trump administration officials in recent days, the response has been that the White House is focused on long-term job creation in sectors like manufacturing that have relocated overseas. Officials from the Trump administration indicated that the current market upheaval may be a necessary, albeit temporary, disruption to facilitate long-term change.
A notable executive serving as an intermediary between Wall Street and Trump officials stated he has begun advising colleagues and competitors to cease efforts to convince Mr. Trump to postpone the tariffs, and instead focus on negotiating exemptions for specific levies impacting industries that would struggle to swiftly replace imported goods.
There are already indications that Wall Street is feeling the pressure.
During a follow-up call three days after the meeting with Mr. Lutnick, some of the chief executives who attended began talking less about persuading Mr. Trump and more about safeguarding their banks from the decisions he appeared resolute in implementing, two individuals informed about the conversation revealed.
On Tuesday morning, even Mr. Ackman softened his criticism, stating in another post on X that he supports Mr. Trump’s initiative to impose tariffs to eradicate “unfair trade practices.” Mr. Ackman qualified his statement by saying that “doing so without allowing time for negotiation results in unnecessary harm.”
Susan C. Beachy contributed research.
