Trump bought Netflix and Warner Bros bonds at height of bidding war with Paramount

By Trevor Hunnicutt and Matt Tracy

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump bought more than $1.1 million of Netflix bonds over the last three months as the streaming giant unsuccessfully fought Paramount Skydance to buy Warner Bros Discovery, according to ‌government disclosures.

Trump bought more than $500,000 of Netflix's bonds in two transactions on December 12 and December 16 and another more than $600,000 ‌across two more trades on January 2 and 20, the disclosures show. The White House disclosed a range, rather than exact amounts, of between just over $1.1 million and $2.25 million.

The purchases ​came as the Republican president and his regulatory officials talked Netflix down in the press, calling into question whether the deal would withstand antitrust scrutiny and pressuring Netflix to fire board member Susan Rice, a onetime aide to Democratic former President Barack Obama.

It's unclear whether he made or lost money on Netflix's bonds, which paid an interest rate of 5.375% and are due in November 2029, since the filing doesn't disclose if or when he sold ‌the bonds.

Trump, like other U.S. presidents, is exempt ⁠from conflict-of-interest laws that prohibit other executive branch officials from investing in companies with business before the government. He is believed to have bought the bonds through a trust managed by his kids.

"President Trump’s assets are in a ⁠trust managed by his children," said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly. "There are no conflicts of interest."

The deal, which would have left the combined company with about $85 billion in debt, immediately put pressure on Netflix's bonds. They were trading at $1.03 and $1.04 on the dollar when he bought them on December 12 and 16 and ​at $1.04 ​and $1.03 on the dollar for his second round of purchases on January 2 and ​20, according to data compiled by LSEG.

They were recently ‌trading at $1.04 on the dollar on February 26, the day before Netflix withdrew its bid for Warner Bros, but have since moved back to $1.03 on the dollar as of Friday.

Trump also purchased between $500,002 and $1 million in Warner Bros bonds in two trades on December 12 and December 16 that were trading at 91.75 cents and 92 cents on the dollar when they were purchased and are now worth 95 cents on every dollar. If he held on to those bonds, they would be in the money now.

Trump started calling into question the viability of the merger with ‌Netflix days after it was announced on December 5, telling reporters the concentration of ​market power "could be a problem."