Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House, and her husband Paul, are known for their stock and options trades, which are often scrutinized for insider trading allegations. In 2022, the couple made a controversial trade when they sold 25,000 shares of Nvidia Corporation, valued between $1 million and $5 million. The trade was made public after Pelosi exercised calls of the semiconductor company, ahead of a vote on the CHIPS Act by Congress; a bill she publicly supported. Although the couple sold the shares to avoid a potential conflict of interest, they could have missed out on potential profits of around $5,329,750 as Nvidia shares hit an all-time high of $394.80 on Thursday and are trading at $378.24 at the time of writing. Pelosi has been asked about her husband’s alleged use of information based on her congressional activity and there have been growing calls to ban members of Congress and their spouses from trading.
The successful trades of the Pelosis have prompted Sen. Josh Hawley to introduce the Pelosi Act, also known as the Preventing Elected Leaders from Owning Securities and Investments Act that aims to stop members of Congress from trading.