Jared Kushner’s Secret Gulf-Fund Claims: A Deep-Dive into Matthew Cole’s New Book

Investigative journalist Matthew Cole’s book *Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East* alleges that the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia funneled at least $2 billion into two offshore accounts—“Alpha” and “Beta”—overseen by Kushner while he was a senior adviser. The “Alpha” account is said to have held roughly $750 million at First Abu Dhabi Bank; the “Beta” account allegedly held about $1 billion and was moved through Azerbaijan to the Israeli Central Bank. Cole says the money was meant to finance diplomatic projects advancing a Gulf-led vision of normalized Israel-Arab relations and to fund a “rainy-day defense fund” for a future war with Iran.

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Kushner entered the White House in early 2017 with his wife, Ivanka Trump. According to Cole, Emirati ruler Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) approached Kushner that year with a proposal to create a “foreign-policy fund” to further Trump’s Middle-East agenda. The book links the alleged payments to Gulf strategies such as the 2017 Qatar blockade and the Abraham Accords.

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• Alleged total: >= $2 billion in the two accounts.

The Guardian

• “Alpha”: ? $750 million at First Abu Dhabi Bank.

The Guardian

• “Beta”: ? $1 billion reportedly routed via Azerbaijan to the Israeli Central Bank.

The Guardian

• A separate claim cites a $50 million payment routed through Azerbaijan to a Cyprus account after the 2017-2018 Gulf-Qatar crisis.

Raw Story

Kushner’s legal team, led by Chad Mizelle of Clare Locke, denies any foreign accounts or illicit payments. Kushner’s posts on X call the book’s claims “completely insane” and “never happened.” His lawyers have sent a 13-page letter to Simon & Schuster and Vanity Fair demanding retraction and warning of defamation lawsuits. Vanity Fair and Condé Nast declined comment; the Dutch government, the UAE and Saudi embassies also did not respond.

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• Existence of accounts: Cole describes the accounts in detail, citing unnamed sources. Kushner’s attorneys and the Bank of Israel say the central bank does not offer private banking services, casting doubt on the claim.

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• Evidence of transfers: Cole’s narrative relies on anonymous sources and footnotes but provides no publicly released documents such as bank statements. Kushner’s side emphasizes this lack of evidence.

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• Scope of involvement: Some sources allege personal benefit for Kushner, while his attorney asserts that his financial disclosures are fully public and show no foreign relationships.

The Guardian

• “The central allegation in this book is categorically false. These are not questions of interpretation or competing recollections: there are no bank accounts. They don’t exist. These are egregious and defamatory claims without a shred of evidence to substantiate them.” — Chad Mizelle

The Guardian

• “We formally put Vanity Fair and Condé Nast on notice regarding the false and defamatory allegations published about our client, Jared Kushner,” — Chad Mizelle

New York Post

Kushner’s team has signaled that lawsuits against Simon & Schuster, Cole, and possibly Vanity Fair could be filed “as early as this week.” Cole says he will continue promoting the book, including a recent interview on *The Daily Show*. No court dates have been set, and the legal outcomes remain pending.

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