The money behind the anti-ICE protests comes from a mix of identifiable sources: a documented pipeline tied to Shanghai-based businessman Neville Roy Singham that congressional investigators value at as much as $278 million, a cluster of American nonprofits that receive foundation and donor-advised-fund grants, and, for most on-the-ground activity, small-dollar donations and volunteer labor. Who is funding the anti-ICE protests has become one of the central questions of a federal grand jury probe, several congressional investigations, and proposed legislation, but the specific claim that rank-and-file demonstrators are being personally paid has largely fallen apart in court.
The Singham Network
The most concrete funding trail runs through Neville Roy Singham, a former U.S. technology executive who now lives in Shanghai. Federal prosecutors and the House Oversight Committee describe three main channels moving his money into American nonprofits.
Mutod LLC, a now-defunct Chicago shell corporation, received $164 million. The GS Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc., a Goldman Sachs philanthropic vehicle, received over $110 million. Likewise Conceptions LLC, another defunct entity, received $3.5 million. Those funds were then distributed to organizations including The People’s Forum, the Justice and Education Fund, CodePink Women for Peace, Tricontinental Ltd., and BreakThrough Media.1AOL. DOJ Launches Grand Jury Probe
Goldman Sachs terminated its relationship with Singham in February 2024. CEO David Solomon has pledged cooperation with federal investigators after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned the firm could face scrutiny for facilitating the transactions.
The House Ways and Means Committee, led by Chairman Jason Smith, has focused on The People’s Forum, a Manhattan nonprofit that describes itself as a political education and cultural hub. Between 2017 and 2022, the group reportedly received over $20 million from Singham and his wife, Jodie Evans, a co-founder of Code Pink. The People’s Forum acknowledged the funding in a 2021 social media post, calling Singham a “Marxist comrade.”2House Committee on Ways and Means. Chairman Smith Exposes U.S. Nonprofit as Likely CCP-Funded Propaganda Arm Operating Under Tax-Exempt Status The committee alleges the organization incited anti-ICE protests and campus occupations.
Witnesses at a February 2026 Ways and Means hearing alleged that Singham attended CCP propaganda training sessions and shares office space with Chinese state media in Shanghai, describing the network as a “repeatable system for paralyzing American infrastructure” rather than grassroots activism.3House Committee on Ways and Means. Six Key Moments: Hearing on Foreign Influence in American Non-Profits The committee has made referrals to the IRS regarding eleven tax-exempt organizations, and the DOJ grand jury probe into the financial network is ongoing.
ANSWER, PSL, and the Shut It Down Coalition
Two organizations repeatedly identified inside the Singham orbit are the ANSWER Coalition and the Party for Socialism and Liberation. The ANSWER Coalition operates as a fiscally sponsored project of the Progress Unity Fund, which provided roughly $244,000 to the coalition over five years. A data scientist cited by the House Oversight Committee identified Singham as “the main backer behind” the PSL.4U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Letter to Neville Singham Both groups, along with The People’s Forum, serve as core conveners of the “Shut It Down for Palestine” coalition, which has organized protests against both ICE and Israel.
Not every organization named has accepted the characterization. The Indianapolis Liberation Center, which Senator Jim Banks placed inside the Singham network, pushed back. Director Derek Ford called the claim of Chinese government funding “laughable” and said the center relies on community donations and store revenue.5IndyStar. Sen. Banks Asks AG Bondi To Investigate Anti-ICE Protests
CHIRLA and Federal Grant Money
A separate House Judiciary Committee probe opened in June 2025 looks at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, a Los Angeles-based advocacy group. Chairman Jim Jordan and Representatives Tom McClintock and Andy Biggs demanded documents to determine whether CHIRLA used federal money to “foment” the anti-ICE riots that broke out in Los Angeles after deportation raids. Those riots caused an estimated $30 million in damage and prompted the deployment of about 4,000 National Guard members and 700 active-duty Marines.6House Judiciary Committee. House Judiciary Committee Opens Probe Into Taxpayer-Funded Groups’ Potential Ties to LA Riots
CHIRLA received about $450,000 in Department of Homeland Security grants for citizenship education between October 2021 and September 2024. Financial records for the fiscal year ending June 2023 show it took in nearly $34 million in government grants, most of it from California, up from $12 million the prior year. The Trump administration terminated the group’s federal funding in March 2025 and moved to claw back roughly $101,000 in unpaid grants.
A CHIRLA spokesperson confirmed the group held a press event on June 5, 2025, and deployed legal observers to immigration courts and detention centers on June 6 through 8 as part of the “LA Rapid Response Network.” The spokesperson denied any participation in or coordination of the riots: “We have not participated, coordinated, or been part of the protests being registered in Los Angeles other than the press conference and rally cited above.”
George Soros and the Open Society Foundations
Soros and the Open Society Foundations are the names invoked most often in public allegations, and the foundation has repeatedly denied the central claim. In an official statement, OSF said: “We do not pay people to protest or directly train or coordinate protestors.”7Open Society Foundations. The Open Society Foundations and Protest in the United States The foundation acknowledged making grants to civil society groups working on democracy, voting rights, and racial justice, and said all grantees must comply with the law and uphold commitments to nonviolence.
OSF chief communications officer Laura Silber called the allegations “an attempt to distract from the real matters at hand” and “demeaning to the people out there protesting.” Specific viral claims, including a doctored photo of buses labeled “Soros Riot Dance Squad” and the assertion that Soros arranged pallets of bricks near protest sites, have been debunked.8Los Angeles Times. George Soros Conspiracy Theories
OSF does fund organizations active in protest-adjacent work. Its grantees include the ACLU, Indivisible, and the Center for American Progress. The foundation gave $225,000 to Jewish Voice for Peace in 2022 and committed $400 million over eight years to climate-related work. The Capital Research Center, a right-leaning group, published a report alleging OSF provided over $80 million to “pro-terror” groups; the organization later changed the report’s title from “pro-terror” to “extremism,” which OSF cited as a tacit admission that the original framing was false.9The Guardian. George Soros, Trump, and Non-Profits The DOJ has reportedly been directed to investigate the foundation.
Are the Street Protesters Themselves Being Paid?
This is where the funding question most often collides with the evidence. President Donald Trump has publicly asserted that protesters are compensated, calling them “troublemakers, agitators, and insurrectionists,” and FBI Director Kash Patel announced the bureau is investigating “any and all monetary connections responsible for these riots” after the Los Angeles clashes of June 2025.10The National Desk. FBI To Investigate Funding Anti-ICE Protests, Organizations Involved
A joint investigation by ProPublica and FRONTLINE reviewed more than 300 arrests of protesters and bystanders and found that statements by arresting officers were “repeatedly debunked by video footage.” In more than a third of the cases reviewed, prosecutors dismissed charges, declined to file them, or lost at trial.11ProPublica. Caught in the Crackdown
One case became emblematic. Alejandro Orellana was filmed distributing water and food to protesters in Los Angeles. An X account identified him and wrote that “we must identify him, so we can track down who is funding this coordinated attack.” Alex Jones then named Orellana and claimed Soros was behind the protests. Federal prosecutors charged Orellana with conspiracy, but the case was dismissed by late July 2025 after agents found no incriminating evidence and prosecutors failed to charge anyone else in the alleged conspiracy.
During arrests in Chicago in October 2025, FBI agents questioned one detainee about who paid for him to participate and who “covered the transportation cost.” No charges were filed against that individual or most of the others arrested that day. Podcaster Benny Johnson posted videos calling the arrested individuals “Democrat domestic terrorists,” but nearly all were released without charges.
Minnesota offers the most aggressive prosecution to date. On June 16, 2026, a federal grand jury indicted 15 Minnesota residents on charges of conspiracy to impede or injure federal officers in connection with “Operation Metro Surge.” The U.S. Attorney identified the defendants as members and associates of “Direct Action Minnesota,” described as an antifa affinity group.12MPR News. Federal Prosecutors Announce Charges Against Immigration Enforcement Opponents Fifty labor, religious, and progressive organizations, including multiple Indivisible chapters, signed a statement describing their own involvement as peaceful: “We blew whistles. We observed. We donated food.”13Minnesota Reformer. Labor and Faith Groups Decry Federal Indictment of 15 Anti-ICE Protesters Indivisible Twin Cities, an all-volunteer group, set up an ActBlue legal defense fund and uses its donations for basic operational costs like website hosting.14Indivisible Twin Cities. Calls to Action The current indictment followed an earlier wave of 36 federal cases during winter enforcement operations; half of those were later dropped.
Congressional Letters and FARA Demands
Multiple senators have pressed the Department of Justice. On February 3, 2026, Senator Josh Hawley wrote to Attorney General Pam Bondi requesting an investigation into the funding of anti-ICE protests in Minnesota and nationwide. Hawley described the architecture as “layered nonprofit pass-through entities, fiscal sponsorship arrangements, and short-lived ‘grassroots’ fronts” designed to obscure donor identities and said the conduct could violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, federal campaign-finance law, and racketeering statutes.15U.S. Senator Josh Hawley. Hawley Urges DOJ To Investigate Left-Wing Dark Money Groups Funding Anti-ICE Protests
Senator Jim Banks wrote to Bondi on February 18, 2026, urging investigation into whether foreign entities, including the Chinese Communist Party, are financing the protests. He named Singham specifically and asked how many organizations involved in anti-ICE activities receive foreign support and whether they have complied with FARA.5IndyStar. Sen. Banks Asks AG Bondi To Investigate Anti-ICE Protests Banks separately urged the DOJ to investigate Code Pink for FARA violations, citing a New York Times report that Singham provides nearly a quarter of its funding.16U.S. Senator Jim Banks. Senator Jim Banks: I Urge You to Investigate Code Pink for Potential Violations of FARA
Senator Chuck Grassley wrote to the DOJ and FBI in April 2025 asking whether Code Pink and The People’s Forum are required to register as foreign agents, setting an April 30, 2025 deadline for a response.17U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley. Grassley Letter to DOJ/FBI Regarding Code Pink and The People’s Forum No public DOJ or FBI responses to any of these letters have been reported.
Pending Legislation
On July 22, 2025, Senator Ted Cruz introduced the Stop Financial Underwriting of Nefarious Demonstrations and Extremist Riots Act, cosponsored by Senators John Cornyn, Tommy Tuberville, Bill Hagerty, Thom Tillis, Mike Lee, and Josh Hawley. Representative Beth Van Duyne introduced a companion bill in the House.18U.S. Senator Ted Cruz. Sen. Cruz Introduces Bill Targeting NGOs and Adversaries Funding Violent Riots
The bill would amend federal racketeering law to make “rioting,” as defined by the Anti-Riot Act, a predicate offense under RICO. That change would let the DOJ bring conspiracy charges, pursue asset forfeiture, impose enhanced penalties, and prosecute organizations collectively for funding or coordinating interstate riots. Cruz said: “Domestic NGOs and foreign adversaries fund and use riots in the United States to undermine the security and prosperity of Americans.”19Rep. Beth Van Duyne. Rep. Van Duyne Introduces the Stop FUNDERs Act
A September 2025 presidential memorandum on “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence” directed the National Joint Terrorism Task Forces to pursue FARA and money laundering charges against nonprofits, Americans abroad, and individuals with close ties to foreign influence networks. Texas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Arkansas, and Oklahoma have enacted what are informally called “Baby FARA” laws targeting activities conducted on behalf of designated foreign countries of concern.20Mayer Brown. FARA Enforcement in 2025
Where Things Stand
Two different pictures sit side by side. The Singham pipeline is documented: Goldman Sachs has confirmed the financial relationship, specific dollar figures have been traced through specific shell entities, and a federal grand jury is active. That is a real funding story with real nonprofit recipients and real foreign ties under investigation. The broader claim that street protesters are being systematically paid to show up is a different claim, and so far it has not held up when individual cases reach prosecutors or video review. The ProPublica and FRONTLINE findings, the Orellana dismissal, and the collapse of half the earlier Minnesota cases all point the same way. Where this lands next depends on the grand jury, the IRS referrals on eleven tax-exempt organizations, and whether the Stop FUNDERs Act or similar measures become law.