Eric Hovde’s bank has been accepting money from unknown foreign governments and banks for years

Wisconsin GOP Senate candidate Eric Hovde actively serves as the chairman and CEO of Sunwest Bank, a company which has been consistently accepting donations from foreign banks and governments dating back to 2017.

Sunwest Bank, a commercial bank for entrepreneurs based in the West Coast worth $3 billion, began reporting foreign government deposits totaling nearly $250,000 in December 2023, coinciding with Hovde’s confirmation as a Senate candidate.

This disclosure follows a trend seen on the company’s call reports since March 2017, indicating holdings of more than $118 million from undisclosed foreign banks, which began only after Hovde assumed the role of CEO. 

In a report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Hovde confirmed that he would step down from his managing positions at Sunwest Bank should he be elected to the U.S. Senate in November. However, he has expressed reluctance to divest his ownership of the company, a decision that can lead to a conflict of interest. 

When asked about how he plans to handle his ownership in the bank, Hovde responded saying he “will make that decision when that bridge comes.” 

Though it has not been disclosed how much of the company Hovde owns, he has referred to Sunwest as his “main business” when mentioning that he “owns a bank.” 

A position in the Senate could give Hovde the ability to influence banking-related legislation, which could lead to personal benefits if he continued to own a large portion of Sunwest Bank. Yet, Hovde believes only a “small handful” of voters would care.

“California bank owner Eric Hovde is running for Senate to help himself and his bank make millions of dollars, not to fight for working Wisconsinites,” said Arik Wolk, rapid response director for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “He is a walking conflict of interest who the people of Wisconsin cannot trust him to work for them and only them.”