House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband has placed up to $1 million worth of bullish bets on Tesla stock, the politician revealed in a financial disclosure form last week.
Paul Pelosi, who runs an investment firm, bought 25 call options on Tesla stock with a strike price of $500 and an expiration date of March 18, 2022. He spent between $500,001 and $1 million on them on December 22.
The call options give him the right to buy 2,500 Tesla shares at $500 each at any point before they expire in March 2022.
That may sound like a fantastic deal with shares in Elon Musk’s electric-vehicle company changing hands at about $850 on Monday. However, Pelosi will have paid a premium for the options, so Tesla stock would have to climb before they become profitable to exercise.
Pelosi likely opted to buy long-term equity anticipation security, or LEAP, options, as they cost less up front than buying Tesla shares directly while granting exposure to a stock that skyrocketed by about 700% last year. The $500 strike price means the options are “in the money” and won’t be worthless even if Tesla’s stock price treads water or falls by a few hundred dollars by the time they expire.
The purchases are legal but have raised eyebrows. Nancy Pelosi now has a financial interest in Tesla’s success, even as she’s poised to play a key role in passing green initiatives that stand to help the automaker.
The veteran politician’s spouse also spent up to $500,000 for 100 call options on Apple stock with a strike price of $100 and an expiration date of January 21, 2022. He plowed as much as $1 million into 100 call options on Disney stock with a strike price of $100 and an expiration date of March 18, 2022.
Finally, Pelosi’s husband paid between $500,000 and $1 million for 20,000 shares in AllianceBernstein. There’s a total of $1.75 million to $3.5 million in security purchases attributed to Paul on the disclosure form.
Pelosi has represented California in the House of Representatives since 1987, and as speaker she’s second in the line of succession for the presidency, after the vice president. She was the highest-ranking female elected official in US history until Vice President Kamala Harris was inaugurated on Wednesday.
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