Trump's $2B Income Report Reveals Shift to Blue-Chip Stocks, ETF Strategy

President Donald Trump's recent financial disclosure reveals a surprising investment strategy, with over $2 billion in total business income reported for 2025. The disclosure highlights a shift towards traditional equities, with significant purchases of blue-chip stocks such as Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE:BRK), Visa Inc (NYSE:V), Mastercard Inc (NYSE:MA), and Cintas Corp (NASDAQ:CTAS).

The largest single transaction was the sale of between $5 million and $25 million of the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (NYSE:VIG) in June 2026. This mix suggests a conventional ETF strategy focusing on big-name companies, dividend growth, and financial infrastructure.

The Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG) is an interesting proxy for Trump's investment style, tracking companies with records of increasing dividends and holding 333 stocks as of June 30. VIG holds Visa at 2.31% and Cintas at roughly 0.3%. This makes XLF a suitable option for investors looking to capture the financial-services theme without making a single-stock bet.

For those seeking exposure to all four notable purchases, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) offers a broad-market route, holding Berkshire Hathaway, Visa, Mastercard, and Cintas. This 'boring' portfolio owns hundreds of other companies, reducing risk.

Trump's accounts made more than 21,000 securities trades in 2025, raising regulatory questions around his media ventures and real-time information access. Federal securities laws prohibit using non-public information to gain an edge in the markets.