Dominari's chief executive says he has never heard of the Trump sons using their name to influence a government contract
Dominari HoldingsChief executive Anthony Hayes, in comments to ProPublica
Dominari Holdings chief executive Anthony Hayes tells ProPublica that the company has never seen or heard of Donald Trump Jr. or Eric Trump using their family name to influence the granting of a government contract.
Responding to
XpresTest won its CDC Ebola entry screening contract and its State Department outbreak response award through competitive bidding.
“We have never seen or even heard of Don or Eric using their family name to influence the granting of a government contract.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
XpresTest won nearly $40 million in Ebola screening awards months after a fund tied to Trump's sons invested in its parent; the sons say they had no role
On November 9, 2026, ProPublica reported that XpresTest, the biosurveillance subsidiary of XWELL Inc., received an $18.8 million CDC contract to screen travelers for Ebola at U.S. airports and a $20 million State Department award for outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Both came months after American Ventures, a fund launched by Dominari Holdings, invested about $30 million in XWELL. Dominari hired Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump as advisers and gave them a stake of more than 10%, according to ProPublica. XWELL's chief executive, Ezra Ernst, told ProPublica that XpresTest won both awards in competitive bidding. The federal award record for the CDC contract lists it as not competed, with one offer received, under the urgency exception in FAR 6.302-2. The State Department says its award was competitive. A spokesperson for the Trump sons says they are passive minority investors in the fund and had no involvement in the contracts.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
ProPublica reports that XpresTest, a subsidiary of XWELL, received an $18.8 million CDC contract for Ebola entry screening at U.S. airports and a $20 million State Department award for outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of Congo, months after American Ventures, a fund launched by Dominari Holdings, invested about $30 million in XWELL. It includes responses from the State Department, a spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, Dominari's chief executive and XWELL's chief executive.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
ProPublica reports that American Ventures was launched by Dominari Holdings, a financial firm with offices in Trump Tower, and that Dominari's leaders hired the Trump sons as advisers and granted them a stake of more than 10% in the company.
After the quotation
ProPublica reports that American Ventures has also taken stakes in other companies that benefited from administration actions, including the drone maker Powerus, which received an Air Force contract worth up to $90 million.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the award of nearly $40 million in federal Ebola screening and outbreak response funding to XpresTest months after a fund tied to Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump invested in its parent company, XWELL. Hayes rejects the suggestion that the sons used their name to influence government contracts, which denies that part of the matter under scrutiny.
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The Dispute Index. "Dominari's chief executive says he has never heard of the Trump sons using their name to influence a government contract". First published: 2026-11-10. Last updated: 2026-11-10. https://disputeindex.com/events/8506-dominari-holdings-chief-executive-anthony-hayes-tells-propublica