Citadel doubles down on Miami after Mamdani tax attack
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 7
Citadel doubles down on Miami after Mamdani tax attack
9 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 7
At the Milken Institute conference, Ken Griffin said New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's remarks helped settle Citadel's future after its 2022 headquarters move from Chicago to Miami.
Griffin said Citadel still has a large New York presence, where team members paid nearly $2.3bn in city and state taxes over five years.
The dispute centres on Mamdani's proposed pied-a-terre tax and comes as Citadel weighs a Park Avenue redevelopment that could create 15,000 permanent Midtown jobs.
When cities tax the ultra-wealthy more, do they gain vital revenue or simply push capital and jobs to other states?
As states like Florida lure businesses with low taxes, can they avoid the affordability crises now plaguing cities like New York?
Citadel’s $6 Billion New York Exodus: How the Pied-à-Terre Tax Triggered a Miami Expansion and Corporate Flight
Overview
On April 15, 2026, Mayor Zohran Mamdani sparked a fierce political clash by filming a viral video outside billionaire Ken Griffin's penthouse to promote a new pied-à-terre tax targeting luxury second homes. Griffin reacted with outrage, calling the mayor's actions threatening, which led him to accelerate Citadel's expansion in Miami and reconsider a $6 billion New York real estate project. This confrontation ignited a broader debate, prompting other financial firms like Apollo to reassess their New York presence and shift jobs to Florida or Texas. The resulting business exodus threatens New York's tax base and public services, deepening a rivalry between progressive urban tax policies and low-tax states, with political leaders scrambling to manage the fallout.