Nancy Pelosi has long been under the spotlight for her uncanny ability to turn the stock market into her personal ATM. With a combined net worth nearing $250 million, Pelosi and her husband, Paul, have consistently outperformed the S&P 500 by astonishing margins. In 2024, the Pelosis reportedly beat the S&P 500 index by a jaw-dropping 200%, according to financial tracking platform Unusual Whales. Their portfolio grew an impressive 70.9% over the year, continuing a streak that has left even seasoned hedge fund managers scratching their heads—and perhaps grinding their teeth.
This wasn’t a one-off fluke. The Pelosis’ 2024 returns surpassed their 2023 performance, where they posted a 65.5% gain compared to the S&P 500’s 24.8% rise. In fact, their returns in 2024 blew past some of the biggest names in finance, including Citadel and Discovery Capital, firms managing billions in assets. Even Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha himself, couldn’t keep up, with Berkshire Hathaway managing a “mere” 27.1% return. So what’s the secret sauce? Luck? Exceptional strategy? Or perhaps, as skeptics have suggested, an insider edge that comes with a front-row seat to Congress and its upcoming legislative plays?
Paul Pelosi, an investment banker, executes the trades, favoring call options on large technology companies. In 2024, his bets on Nvidia and Palo Alto Networks paid off spectacularly, with gains of 273% and 93%, respectively. But while Paul may place the orders, Nancy’s position in Congress has long afforded her access to legislative developments that often shake the markets. Case in point: in January 2023, she sold over $1.5 million in Alphabet stock just weeks before the Justice Department launched an antitrust lawsuit against the tech giant. Coincidence? Perhaps, but it’s the kind of coincidence that keeps fueling the critics.
Not everyone is content to let this “golden touch” go unchallenged. Republican Senator Josh Hawley introduced legislation in early 2023 cheekily named the PELOSI Act—Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments. The bill aimed to ban members of Congress from trading stocks, a move that would have directly targeted the kind of trading Pelosi’s household has seemingly mastered. While the bill failed, it struck a chord with Americans weary of seeing elected officials turn public service into private profit.
Pelosi’s defenders argue that her trades are legal and managed by her husband, but the optics remain troubling. Whether it’s outperforming the world’s top hedge funds or sidestepping market drops with uncanny timing, the Pelosis have become a lightning rod for criticism about the intersection of politics and personal gain. As debates over insider trading in Congress continue, the “Pelosi Portfolio” is likely to remain a contentious symbol of a system many believe is rigged for those in power.
