Jared Kushner's Peace Envoy Role Collides With £3.9 Billion Fundraising Push in the Middle East Amid Iran War

Jared Kushner is allegedly soliciting at least £3.9 billion ($5 billion) from the same Gulf governments he is simultaneously negotiating with on behalf of the United States, raising conflict-of-interest allegations that have now triggered a formal congressional probe, a watchdog legal letter, and a blocked subpoena on Capitol Hill.

Kushner, who holds no official government post but was named to President Trump's Board of Peace on 19 February 2026, has been embedded in the highest levels of U.S. diplomacy, participating in Iran nuclear talks, Russia-Ukraine negotiations, and Gaza ceasefire discussions.

At the same time, his private equity firm, Affinity Partners, has seen its assets grow to £4.8 billion ($6.2 billion) as of the end of 2025, according to regulatory filings reviewed by Bloomberg.

Senator Elizabeth Warren captured the concern in blunt terms in a video posted to her Senate website: 'Donald Trump named his son-in-law Jared Kushner 'Peace Envoy.' Now, in the middle of a war with Iran, our 'Peace Envoy' is in the Middle East trying to raise $5 billion for his private equity firm.'

Affinity Partners, Gulf Sovereign Wealth, and a Four-Year Pledge That Did Not Hold

Affinity Partners was founded in 2021, immediately after Kushner's first stint in government ended. Within months, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, committed £1.56 billion ($2 billion) to the firm, a move that, according to reporting at the time, PIF's own investment staff recommended against, only for bin Salman to overrule them. Qatar's sovereign wealth fund and the UAE's government-linked funds followed as early investors.

At the start of 2024, Affinity managed approximately £2.34 billion ($3 billion) in foreign capital. By year's end, that figure had jumped to £3.75 billion ($4.8 billion), according to SEC filings cited in the Garcia-Wyden letter of 19 March 2026. The Democratic lawmakers argued the surge suggested Gulf governments were 'currying favour' with Kushner in anticipation of Trump's return to office.

Regulatory filings reviewed by Bloomberg confirmed the firm's AUM reached £4.8 billion ($6.2 billion) by the end of 2025, a 30 percent rise that tracked almost precisely with Kushner's deepening involvement in US foreign policy.

In December 2024, fresh off his father-in-law's election victory, Kushner told the Invest Like The Best podcast that his firm would 'preemptively' halt new fundraising for four years to avoid conflicts.

That pledge appears to have been short-lived. The New York Times reported on 13 March 2026, citing five people with direct knowledge, that Kushner had been speaking with potential investors about raising at least £3.9 billion ($5 billion) in fresh capital, with Saudi Arabia's PIF among those in discussion for 'first look' rights, a characterisation subsequently confirmed by Axios.

Congress Launches Probe as CREW Demands Financial Disclosure Within 30 Days

On 19 March 2026, Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden and House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Robert Garcia launched a formal investigation, writing simultaneously to the White House and to Affinity Partners directly.

The letters demanded a detailed schedule of Kushner's foreign travel since 20 January 2025, records of every foreign government with whom he had discussed U.S. policy, and confirmation of what steps had been taken to separate his government work from his fundraising activities.

The lawmakers argued that Affinity had already collected approximately £121 million ($157 million) in fees from foreign clients, including £67 million ($87 million) directly from the government of Saudi Arabia.

The ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) moved separately, writing to the White House on 11 March 2026 to demand Kushner file a public financial disclosure report within 30 days of his 19 February appointment, the same requirement met by Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. CREW noted that Kushner's unofficial pre-appointment role had placed him entirely outside ethics law, security clearance vetting, and Senate confirmation requirements.

Republican Senator Thom Tillis, according to the Garcia-Wyden letter, has also raised concerns, stating that Witkoff and Kushner 'are not subject to Senate confirmation, and they're not subject to oversight.'

Pre-War Geneva Talks, a Collapsed Deal, and Iran's Rejection of Kushner as Broker

The conflict-of-interest questions over Kushner's finances have arrived at a particularly fraught moment. On 26 February 2026, Kushner and Witkoff met with Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi in Geneva as part of ongoing Iran nuclear negotiations, an encounter confirmed by the Oman News Agency.

The talks centred on Iran's nuclear enrichment programme. Witnesses at the negotiations, as reported by WBUR's On Point, said neither Kushner nor Witkoff brought nuclear experts or technical specialists to the table, a departure from the professional diplomatic standard set during the 2015 JCPOA negotiations.

Weeks later, the US and Israel launched military strikes on Iran while those talks were still nominally ongoing. Iran has since declared it will no longer negotiate with either Witkoff or Kushner, stating it will only engage with Vice President JD Vance.

An Iranian source told The Guardian: 'With Witkoff and Kushner, nothing will come out of it. We have seen that in the past.' Representative Gregory Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, subsequently moved to subpoena Kushner, Witkoff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth to testify on the decisions that led to the Iran war. Republicans defeated the motion by a vote of 24 to 22.

The war in Iran is still active, the peace talks remain deadlocked, Iran has sidelined the administration's two lead envoys, and the man carrying both the diplomatic brief and a £3.9 billion ($5 billion) fundraising pitch to the same Gulf governments has yet to file a single page of public financial disclosure.