Banks Vie for a Piece of Trump’s Fannie-Freddie Mega IPO

The country’s top bankers are lining up for what’s shaping up to be the wildest initial public offering pitch in U.S. history.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are slated to go public in a deal championed by President Donald Trump that could eclipse Saudi Aramco’s record-setting 2019 offering.

The leaders of Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Wells Fargo have all made the trek to Washington to woo Trump and advisors, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, FHFA Chief Bill Pulte and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The administration wants to sell shares in the two government-backed mortgage giants — under federal conservatorship since their 2008 bailout — at a valuation that could reach $500 billion and raise about $30 billion.

The stakes are enormous. Fannie and Freddie underpin nearly half of all U.S. mortgages, so any misstep could ripple through housing markets and consumer borrowing.

Bankers pitching for coveted lead roles are being asked to balance Trump’s political theater with financial reality and to avoid provoking a president known for public feuds with Wall Street executives. One firm reportedly offended officials by suggesting the entities might be worth less than Trump’s target valuation.

The deal would mark a windfall for the federal government, which holds warrants for roughly 80 percent of both firms’ common stock. But key questions remain, including how to handle speculative shareholders like Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square, whether the firms will stay under government control, and how to prevent mortgage-rate shocks that could hit homeowners nationwide.

Some bankers have floated creative workarounds, sources told the Journal, such as giving investors a buyback option if conservatorship continues or structuring new share classes to cushion risk.

Meanwhile, the ever-theatrical Trump stoked chatter by posting an AI-generated image of himself ringing the New York Stock Exchange bell for the debut of what he dubbed the “Great American Mortgage Corporation.”

— Holden Walter-Warner