Citadel’s Ken Griffin Challenges Socialist Policies as Wall Street Migrates to Business-Friendly States

During a recent panel discussion on ‘The Big Money Show,’ Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin addressed the political landscape surrounding President Donald Trump’s and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s speeches commemorating America’s 250th birthday, highlighting the growing influence of far-left politics.

Griffin directly challenged the rising socialist sentiment in America, urging progressive politicians to “read a damn history book” and warning that high taxes and inadequate public services are pushing Wall Street firms out of blue states.

Speaking at a Goldman Sachs symposium, the billionaire hedge fund manager explained that fiscal mismanagement in cities like New York is accelerating a financial migration toward business-friendly hubs in Florida and Texas, according to audio obtained exclusively by Fortune.

“I believe Citadel will be a principal player in financial services for far longer than [New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani] will be mayor,” Griffin stated. “We intend to be here for decades. And he will be here for a few years.”

Griffin questioned how “so many 20- and 30-year-olds” have come to believe socialism leads to prosperity, citing World Bank data that when China embraced free-market policies, it lifted approximately 800 million people out of poverty over four decades.

“It’s the greatest success story in the history of humanity,” he continued, asserting that figures like Bernie Sanders and Mamdani should “read a damn history book for once and then tell us how to run our country.”

Citadel CEO and founder Ken Griffin at the Semafor World Economy Summit meetings in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (Getty Images)

Griffin’s remarks follow similar statements made at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year. The CEO has publicly criticized Mamdani’s tax policies, wealth distribution approach, and the city’s business climate, as well as a viral advertisement targeting Griffin’s New York City penthouse.

Following the pandemic, Citadel relocated its headquarters to Miami, where the firm is constructing a 1.7 million-square-foot office tower in the city’s downtown financial district.

During the Goldman Sachs symposium, Griffin also questioned corporate enthusiasm around artificial intelligence, arguing that companies often conflate genuine technological progress with marketing buzzwords.

FOX Business’s Madison Alworth reported on Griffin reaffirming Citadel’s plans to expand its Miami presence, citing a desire for a state that embraces business on ‘Varney & Co.’

At a dinner with top CEOs about two years ago, Griffin noted that while many executives spoke enthusiastically about AI, not one example involved actual AI implementation.

“I couldn’t help myself. I’m like, ‘Let’s go around the table and share stories about how AI is transforming your business,’ … not one involved AI,” he recalled.

“There is a technological revolution happening, of which AI is a component of the story,” he told Goldman Sachs executive Ashok Varadhan Mahajan, “but it’s just a piece.”

Griffin also cautioned that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan would cause an immediate economic shock in the United States by cutting off access to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, potentially shrinking the U.S. economy by an estimated 8% within six months.

“As an American I get frustrated by this,” he said. “Simply put, we go into a Great Depression in the blink of an eye. Unlike any we’ve seen before… everything freezes.”

Citadel did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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