FBI Investigation Targets Trump Booster Peter Thiel's VC Firm

The deepstate's eye of Sauron set its sights on Mithril Capital.

Heightened Scrutiny

The FBI has turned its all-seeing eye toward Mithril Capital, the venture capital firm co-founded by Silicon Valley tycoon Peter Thiel — an industry kingmaker who's one of the most prominent supporters of the Trump administration in tech.

It's unclear specifically what prompted the FBI to scrutinize the firm's business practices, but Recode reports a host of possibilities ranging from questionable tax strategies to mismanagement of investors' money — a shakeup, in either case, at the explosive intersection of tech and politics.

And My Axe

The FBI isn't alone in its heightened scrutiny of Mithril, which borrows its name from a fictional metal in "Lord of the Rings."

Also probing the company's finances is Cambridge Associates, a prominent investment adviser for the mega-rich that has put millions of dollars into Mithril's coffers, according to Recode. Cambridge is looking into whether the firm has been overly-selective with investments, choosing to sit on investors' cash and collect higher management fees as a result.

All-Seeing Eye

While Thiel isn't involved in day-to-day operations at Mithril, his money and reputation are inexorably linked with its performance.

That's relevant because the firm is also dealing with low morale, per Recode, related to the dual investigations into its practices. It reportedly once collected staffers' computers and phones in a bid to determine who'd been talking to the press and investigators — though a spokesperson told Recode that it was merely a "device upgrade."

Disclosure: The Thiel Foundation previously provided grant funding to Futurism's parent company, Singularity University.

READ MORE: The FBI is investigating a venture capital fund started by Peter Thiel for financial misconduct [Recode]

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