Conservative watchdogs appear to be orchestrating efforts to characterize a Swiss-born billionaire, who has channeled substantial sums into left-wing US organizations, as “the new George Soros.” This branding centers on the impact and intentions of his financial contributions.
Hansjorg Wyss, aged 88 and residing in Wyoming, holds an impressive estimated fortune of $10 billion. Over recent years, Wyss has contributed more than $800 million to liberal causes, with a significant emphasis on initiatives supporting President Joe Biden’s climate agenda. His financial influence in the political sphere is both substantial and strategically targeted.
Apart from environmental efforts, Wyss’s contributions have been instrumental in campaigns aimed at opposing former President Donald Trump. Notably, his funding was also deployed against the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, marking his engagement in high-stakes political battles.
Voices within conservative circles, like Leonard Leo, a billionaire with connections to Americans for Public Trust, have called for counteractions. In a statement from May, Leo underscored the need for conservatives to rally and match the efforts of figures like Wyss and George Soros, emphasizing the defense of constitutional principles as a rallying point.
Hansjorg Wyss (pictured right) is depicted as an influential figure in the liberal movement. At 88, with an estimated net worth of $10 billion and based in Wyoming, he has contributed over $800 million to causes aligned with President Joe Biden’s climate initiatives, illustrating his prominent role in progressive philanthropy.
Americans For Public Trust recently put out an eight-page paper on Wyss attempting to cast him as a new major anti-conservative donor, according to Bloomberg.
Wyss is worth even more than Soros with $10billion to Soros’ $7billion, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index claims.
The Wyss Foundation has donated over $807million in the United States since 2016, with much of it going to either environmental causes or to support the environmental efforts of Biden’s presidency.
He’s even a part of a $5billion international ‘conservation pledge’ with the likes of Michael Bloomberg and Jeff Bezos.
The foundation has a specific arm for lobbying and political advocacy called the Berger Action Fund, which has donated $343million to groups trying to stop Republican gerrymandering efforts, as well as Dem-aligned super PACs.
In fact, over $60million of the Berger fund’s $72million went to drumming up support for the president’s programs.
The Wyss Foundation and BAF claim that they never directly donate to campaigns or candidates, which is prohibited by federal law as it is believed Wyss is still a Swiss national. Wyss’ daughter Amy has previously served on the board of the Wyss Foundation and is a US-Swiss dual citizen.
Much of the consternation over Wyss’ spending is that he remains tight-lipped about his citizenship status.
Outside of politics, Wyss was involved in the 2022 takeover of the English Premier League’s Chelsea FC after Roman Abramovich was forced out.
Wyss, a Swiss-born billionaire, has funneled hundreds of millions to left-leaning US groups, leading conservatives to attempt to label him ‘the new George Soros’
The Wyss Foundation has donated over $807million in the United States since 2016, with much of it going to either environmental causes or to support the environmental efforts of Joe Biden’s presidency
Many of his donations have also gone to trying to stop former President Donald Trump and his successful nomination of now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh
Outside of politics, Wyss was involved in the 2022 takeover of the English Premier League’s Chelsea FC after Roman Abramovich was forced out
He’s also on the board for the left-leaning Center for American Progress and once employed John Podesta, the former Chief of Staff to Bill Clinton with ties to President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Hansjorg Wyss: The low-profile Swiss billionaire who became a force in US politics
Born in the Swiss capital of Bern in 1935, Wyss was raised in an apartment with his two sisters.
He received a master’s degree in civil and structural engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich in 1959 before going on to earn an MBA from Harvard six years later.
After spells in textile engineering – including in different roles for car manufacturer Chrysler in Pakistan, Turkey and the Philippines – he worked in the steel industry and ran a side business selling planes.
Through that side focus, Wyss met a surgeon who had co-founded Synthes, a medical device manufacturer. Spotting an opportunity, the Swiss founded and became president of Synthes USA in 1977.
He was Synthes’ worldwide CEO and chairman until his resignation as CEO in 2007, and was company chairman until Johnson & Johnson – the medical company which developed a Covid vaccine – acquired the company five years later for $19.7 billion.
In 2008, he donated $125 million to Harvard University, in what was then the largest donation in its history.
But he has generated controversy for his funding of groups looking to exert behind-the-scenes influence on American politics.
These include the Hub Project, which seeks to ‘dramatically shift the public debate and policy positions of core decision makers’ by influencing media and public opinion in a ‘progressive’ direction.
Perhaps most controversially, his group has admitted giving $208 million to the left-leaning Sixteen Thirty Fund.
The Republican-led House Ways and Means Committee are considering targeting Wyss by making laws banning foreign nationals from launching advocacy groups tax-free. It has the support of 127 Republicans in the House of Representatives.
Regardless, questions remain about whether Wyss has operated completely above board in his funding.
In a lawsuit filed in 2022, APT challenged Wyss’ donations with regard to his citizenship, accusing the Federal Election Commission of acting too slowly on a complaint it filed against Wyss in May 2021.
‘Americans for Public Trust is suing the FEC for failing to investigate foreign money in our elections,’ Sutherland told The Hill at the time.
‘Mr. Wyss, who is barred from directly or indirectly influencing our elections, has done just that by potentially funneling hundreds of millions of dollars through the Arabella Advisors network to benefit liberal and left-wing causes,’ she added.
‘Until the FEC takes action, we won’t know the full extent of his foreign interference in our electoral process.’
Spokespersons for Wyss have repeatedly insisted that his donations are permissible, and go only toward causes he believes in, rather than supporting political candidates.
Wyss also put together a failed takeover bid in 2021 to buy Tribune Publishing, the company behind the Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, and numerous other US newspapers.
A New York Times article that same year noted that Wyss had ‘quietly become one of the most important donors to left-leaning advocacy groups and an increasingly influential force among Democrats.’
As well, his sister Hedi Wyss wrote in a 2014 book about her brother that he ‘he never applied for citizenship’ in the US, according to RealClearPolitics.
Wyss’ daughter Amy (pictured right) has previously served on the board of the Wyss Foundation and is a US-Swiss dual citizen
Allan Joseph Bankman, the father of disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been allegedly linked to a so-called ‘dark money’ network that pours billions into politically liberal causes, including one linked to the Sixteen Thirty Fund, which has taken over $200million from Wyss
Wyss is a native of Switzerland who now lives in Wilson, Wyoming, where his property holdings include this $3.75 million mansion, public records show
Wyss’ sister Hedi Wyss wrote in a 2014 book about her brother that he ‘he never applied for citizenship’ in the US
‘What was important for him was to find out that he could exert influence through his foundations,’ she added.
The Americans for Public Trust lawsuit cited a 2021 Securities and Exchange Commission filing in which Wyss listed his citizenship as a ‘citizen of Switzerland’.
It also quoted from an interview Wyss gave Bick in 2021, in which he said that he ‘can’t’ donate to American political candidates.
The suit alleges that Wyss used his two nonprofit organizations, the Wyss Foundation and the Berger Action Fund, to funnel millions to the Sixteen Thirty Fund and the New Venture Fund.
The recipients of the funds were so-called dark money groups that fund liberal causes through advocacy groups including The Hub Project and Demand Justice, according to the suit.
The suit alleges that if some of the funds went to campaigns opposing or supporting election candidates, Wyss could be in violation of federal election laws.
According to the Times, the Wyss’ two non-profits from 2016 to 2020 donated $208 million to ‘a wide array of groups that backed progressive causes and helped Democrats in their efforts to win the White House and control of Congress.’
Hansjorg Wyss is seen with Roz Zander and Michael Bloomberg in 2015. A lawsuit alleges that his hundreds of millions in donations to liberal groups violated elections laws
A native of Switzerland who now lives in Wilson, Wyoming, Wyss (second from right) first came to America as an exchange student in 1958
Wyss dismissed the report in an interview with Bick, calling the Times reporter ‘a well-known conservative editor who keeps writing fact-less articles.’
A native of Switzerland who now lives in Wilson, Wyoming, Wyss first came to America as an exchange student in 1958.
He later returned to attend the Harvard Business School, from which he graduated in 1965.
In 1977, Wyss founded Synthes USA, a medical device manufacturer that makes implants to mend bone fractures.
He sold the company to Johnson & Johnson in 2012 in a deal worth $19.7 billion, but still holds stakes in biotech firms NovoCure and Molecular Partners.
Previously, several former Synthes executives were jailed after the firm’s use of an untested medical procedure led to the deaths of three people.
Wyss was not charged or named by prosecutors, but an indictment made reference to the ‘CEO of Synthes’ – a position he held at the time.
Forbes considers Wyss as ‘among the most philanthropic people in the world’, and he has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to environmental charities and universities.
In 2013, he signed The Giving Pledge, thereby agreeing to give away the majority of his fortune. Other moguls to have signed the pledge include Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffett.
In 2008, he donated $125 million to Harvard University, in what was then the largest donation in its history.
But he has generated controversy for his funding of groups looking to exert behind-the-scenes influence on American politics.
These include the Hub Project, which seeks to ‘dramatically shift the public debate and policy positions of core decision makers’ by influencing media and public opinion in a ‘progressive’ direction.
