Kelly Loeffler. Former Bakkt CEO, now US Senator
The recent economic meltdown, largely associated with the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) saw major companies lose a huge chunk of their stock value. Hence, a lot of investors were exposed to serious risks as their portfolios must have shrunk as a result.
According to a recent report, Kelly Loeffler, the former CEO of Bakkt – the Bitcoin futures trading platform, who recently became a US Senator, sold millions in stocks following a private, all-senators briefing.
According to a recent report by The Daily Beast, Senator Kelly Loeffler reported a sale of stock jointly owned by her and her husband on January 24th.
On this day her committee, the Senate Health Committee, hosted an all-senators private briefing from certain administration officials. These include the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, CDC Director Anthony Fauci.
Per the official release, “senators will have the opportunity to hear directly from senior government health officials regarding what we know about the virus so far, and how our country is prepared to respond as the situation develops.”
The first sale that Loeffler reported was of Resideo Technologies, valued between $50,001 and $100,000. Since then, the company’s stock price has dropped by more than half.
Now, it’s worth noting that it’s illegal for members of Congress to trade on information that’s not public and it’s acquired through their official duties.
Loeffler offered a statement on the matter.
This is a ridiculous and baseless attack. I do not make investment decisions for my portfolio. Investment decisions are made by multiple third-party advisors without my or my husband’s knowledge or involvement.
— Senator Kelly Loeffler (@SenatorLoeffler) March 20, 2020
Per the report, between January 24th and February 14th, Loeffler reported selling stock that’s jointly owned with her husband, worth between $1,275,000 and $3,100,000. It also states that the 15 stocks that she sold have lost more than a third of their value, on average.
What appears to be a bit more alarming, however, is a statement that Loeffler made on March 11th. She seems to have downplayed the virus, saying:
“Concerned about coronavirus? Remember this:
The consumer is strong, the economy is strong, & jobs are growing, which puts us in the best economic position to tackle COVID19 & keep Americans safe.”
Stock values, however, don’t seem to be on the same page. Since March 11th, the S&P 500 is down more than 12%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is down more than 14%.
It remains interesting to see how the entire situation will develop.