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At least six Indian-origin individuals are among the over 300 donors who helped the Trump Presidency raise around $2 billion in 2025, an investigation by The New York Times has revealed. The donations are mostly transactional in nature, and those involved have benefited from the Trump administration, according to the report. Microsoft's Satya Nadella, Google's Sundar Pichai and the envoy to Singapore, Anjani Sinha, are among the Indian-origin donors.
The Trump campaign is the only one in American history to continue fundraising in its second term. (Image: File)
Six Indian-origin Americans or the companies they head are among the hundreds of donors who helped the Donald Trump presidency to raise around $2 billion in funding in 2025, eclipsing the $1.45 billion raised during the 2024 election campaign, according to The New York Times. An investigation by the American media outlet found that most donations were transactional in nature, with the donors receiving benefits from the Trump administration.
The New York Times (NYT) investigation reveals that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who donated $3.5 million to the presidency, was the biggest Indian-origin contributor. Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, donated $1.2 million. One of the big non-tech industry donors was Anjali Sinha. The Patna-born orthopaedic surgeon is now the American Ambassador to Singapore.
While Trump has been accepting donations from the tech industry, especially from Indian-origin heads, his administration has been working to dismantle the H-1B programme, used by American tech giants to hire foreign talent.
The Trump Presidency stands out in history as being the only second-term presidency that has continued to aggressively lobby for further funding after his inauguration.
The NYT investigation uncovered hundreds of donors, including at least 346 individuals who have donated $250,000 or more to the Trump Presidency. The list also includes at least six Indian-origin individuals, including Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Adobe Systems CEO Shantanu Narayen, Micron Technology CEO Sanjay Mehrotra, IBM CEO, Arvind Krishna, and US Ambassador to Singapore, Anjani Sinha.
The report said many of those donations were transactional in nature, with at least 197 of the 346 high-level donors benefiting from certain decisions of the Trump Administration, including Presidential pardons, dropped legal cases, government contracts and high positions within the administration.
The report also alleged that the presidency used a variety of avenues to accumulate and process donations, including MAGA Inc, which raised at least $200 million, and the Trust for the Mall, which raised at least $350 million.
EXCLUSIVE ACCESS TO TRUMP: DONATION OR BRIBE BY AMERICAN CORPORATES?
The fundraising is led by Trump's campaign finance director, Meredith O'Rourke. According to the NYT report, President Trump closely tracks which companies have given, and how much, debriefing regularly with O'Rourke. Donations are solicited by lobbyists who assure donors they would be able to get into a favourable position vis a vis President Trump.
The report stated that those individuals who donated at least $1 million were granted exclusive access to Trump, being invited to attend various events like fund-raising dinners as well as the opportunity of accompanying him on foreign trips.
Speaking to the NYT, former White House official and lobbyist Harisson Fields remarked that, "In this town, money talks, and that is going to give you an opportunity to at least have a seat at the table," adding that all donations are made as business decisions and that there's no coercion involved.
However, the line between a donation and a bribe gets erased in such situations. Lobbying, through proper channels, is legal in the US. However, Trump, who has a gold fixation, has been seen to be getting influenced by riches.
The NYT report alleged at least 197 high-level donors have benefited significantly from their contributions, which include Presidential Pardons, lenient legal sentences, tax cuts, legislative relaxations, high-level appointments to the Administration etc.
WHO ARE THE HIGH-LEVEL INDIAN-ORIGIN DONORS?
The NYT Investigation identified at least six Indian-origin individuals among the 346 high-level donors who contributed between $750,000 and $3.5 million.
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, was identified as having donated a sum of $3.5 million to the presidency, including $1 million for the inauguration, making him the biggest Indian-origin contributor. In return, he was invited to the swearing-in ceremony, as well as regular dinner invitations, while the company benefited from the Trump administration's limiting US states from enforcing separate legislation on Artificial Intelligence.
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, was identified as having donated a sum of $1.2 million. In return, several high-level Google executives reportedly were granted direct access to President Trump. The administration also settled a lawsuit brought against Google by Trump himself after the company agreed to donate a sum of $24.5 million to Trump’s ballroom project.
Anjali Sinha, a Patna-born orthopaedic surgeon living in the US since 1977, was identified as having donated a sum of $1 million to the Trump Presidency. He was later nominated as the American Ambassador to Singapore, despite being described as "unqualified" by Senator Tammy Duckworth during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting.
Shantanu Narayen, as CEO of Adobe, was identified as having donated a sum of $1 million. In return, he joins the list of tech executives with direct access to President Trump as well as invitations to dinners and foreign trips.
Similarly, Micron Technology CEO Sanjay Mehrotra and IBM CEO, Arvind Krishna also donated $1 million and $750,000, respectively, getting similar perks, with Micron particularly benefiting from the Trump Administration’s policy decisions, particularly its support for domestic chipmakers.
HOW IS THE TRUMP PRESIDENCY RAISING FUNDS?
According to the NYT investigation, the Trump Presidency stands out as the only second-term presidency which continued aggressive fund-raising post inauguration, bucking the trend of other second-term presidents who usually focus on boosting their parties’ committees and candidates.
The NYT reported that the Trump Presidency set up multiple avenues to collect and process donations. The largest of these is MAGA Inc, a super Political Action Committee (PAC) that raises and spends money to support Trump and allied causes. Between November 2024 and June 2025, the group collected around $200 million.
Alongside this, Trump’s inaugural committee set a new US record, raising nearly $240 million for his swearing-in ceremony. Fund-raising has also extended to the grand ballroom project at the White House. Trump has said about $350 million has been raised for the project, though The New York Times has verified donations of roughly $100 million so far. Contributions for the ballroom are routed through the Trust for the Mall.
Additional money has been raised for other Trump-aligned entities, including America250, which is organising events to mark 250 years of US independence, the White House Historical Association, and a political nonprofit called Securing American Greatness. The report also stated that aside from the PAC, the other bodies are not federally obliged to disclose the identity of their donors.
The NYT reports that the Trump Administration has denied having adopted a quo-pro-quo policy towards donors, saying their contributions have no bearing on policymaking. Nevertheless, the investigation makes clear the extraordinary scale of funding that the Presidency has received in 2025, and how individuals and corporations are potentially using it for their own benefit.
- Ends
Published On:
Dec 24, 2025
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