Former Bakkt CEO Kelly Loeffler Accused of Improper Trading Practices

Kelly Loeffler, a Senator from the state of Georgia, has been cited for conducting improper trading activities in the wake of the global coronavirus pandemic. The Senator, who just got tapped to fill the role by Governor Brian Kemp, is now facing heavy criticism for using her post to enrich herself.

A Happy Accident or a Calculated Move?

Before joining the Senate last November, Kelly ran Bakkt, one of the top institutional investment firms in the crypto space. According to a recent report from The Daily Beast, the Senator sold 27 various stocks that were jointly owned by her and her husband – Jeffrey C. Speeches, the chief executive of the Intercontinental Exchange, Bally’s parent company. The sales were reportedly initiated last month, in the wake of a Senate Health Committee on the coronavirus.

To recap: Sens. Burr and Loeffler were warned of the seriousness of this pandemic and then proceeded to reassure their constituents publicly while quietly dumping millions of dollars worth of stock. They must resign. #MA04

— Becky W. Grossman (@BeckyWGrossman) March 20, 2020

The report confirmed that the sale was recorded on the same day as the briefing, thus giving rise to speculations that the Senator had used the information she got to make the trade. One of the companies she got out of is Resideo Technologies – a firm whose stock had dipped by 50 percent since then.

Within that time, Loeffler and her husband have made just a few purchases, with the most prominent being Citrix – a company that provides solutions for distributed workforce systems. The firm’s website claims that they’re committed to providing support for companies whose operations have been affected by the virus outbreak but which will still like to work optimally.

In a world where companies are beginning to embrace remote work and are looking to make their operations more flexible, a company like Citrix will see some significant business, thus providing a massive payday for its investors. The Daily Beast confirmed that the size of Loffler and her husband’s investment ranges from $100,000 to $250,000.

Loeffler has already come out to dismiss any criminal insinuations, calling the allegations baseless in a tweet. She added that she was only notified of the transactions three weeks after they were made, adding that all records were submitted to the Senate Ethics Committee.

“This is a ridiculous and baseless attack. I do not make investment decisions for my portfolio. Investment decisions are made by multiple third-party advisors without my or my husband’s knowledge or involvement.”

Regardless, of course, this sort of coincidence has not escaped the notice of people.

Not the Start Loeffler Would Have Wanted

Loeffler was chosen to fill a position that was rather highly contested. Republican Representative Doug Collins was topped by many to fill the Georgia Senatorial role, after it was vacated by Sen. Johnny Isakson last year. However, Kemp’s endorsement of Loeffler came as a shock to everyone.

It is never too soon for such as Burr and Loeffler to start thinking about their careers after politics. Like they say in those TV commercials, life comes at you fast.

— Mike Lupica (@MikeLupica) March 20, 2020

At the time, many accused Loeffler of being a “closet liberal” whose business ties could present a bit of a conflict. Her record was also rather slim, compared to Collins, who had been a staunch Trump supporter and a member of the President’s team of regular defenders. Despite mounting pressure, however, Kemp stuck to his choice and picked Loeffler for the seat.

While she has affirmed her commitment to the Trump administration – even going as far as promising $20 million to his re-election campaign – this is some drama that she wouldn’t want to dog her first year as a Senator.