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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Did Paul Pelosi acquire $5.76 million of Microsoft stock days before the Army announced a $22 billion contract with the company?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

In an April 9, 2021, filing, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi disclosed that her husband, Paul Pelosi, exercised options to purchase 25,000 Microsoft shares on March 19. Based on the closing market price of $230.35 that day, his holding would have been valued at about $5.76 million.

On March 31 the Army announced a $21.88 billion contract with Microsoft to buy augmented reality headsets. Microsoft stock has risen to $255.59 as of April 13.

A 2012 law prohibits members of Congress from insider training, that is, using their special access to nonpublic information to make a private profit. There is no evidence that Pelosi had advance knowledge of the Army’s order.

Members of the House are required to make regular disclosures about their and their spouses’ personal finances to increase transparency about potential conflicts of interest.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
US House of Representatives House clerk: Periodic transaction report by Speaker Pelosi
Barron's Nancy Pelosi’s husband bought Roblox, Microsoft stock
CNBC Microsoft wins US Army contract for augmented reality headsets, worth up to $21.9 billion over 10 years
Yahoo Finance Microsoft stock price
US House of Representatives Ethics Committee: Policies underlying disclosure
Wiley Rein LLP Ethics round-up: STOCK Act amendment; STOCK Act suit; House ethics actions
US Congress Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012 (STOCK Act)
Congressional Institute Can members of Congress engage in insider trading?
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.