Billionaires Ken Griffin and Marc Rowan are relocating thousands of jobs out of New York City, citing Mayor Mamdani’s “tax the rich” agenda as the catalyst for what executives warn could be a larger Wall Street exodus.

Griffin told CNBC on Tuesday that a social media video Mamdani posted featuring his $238 million penthouse to promote a luxury second-home tax prompted him to expand Citadel’s Miami hub significantly. “We will add far more jobs in Miami over the next decade as an immediate and direct consequence of the mayor’s poor decision,” Griffin said, describing the video as “creepy.”

The hedge fund magnate had previously threatened to scrap a $6 billion Park Avenue development for Citadel if the tax proposal advanced.

Apollo Global Management, a $900 billion asset manager, is preparing to open a new hub in Florida or Texas with 1,000 employees—matching its New York headcount—amid concerns about Mamdani’s anti-business stance.

The threatened departures align with warnings from Gov. Hochul and other city leaders that aggressive taxation could trigger capital flight. A pro-business group, Partnership for New York City, estimates potential losses of 2,700 financial-sector jobs and $168 million in annual state and city tax revenue. Apollo paid roughly $1.28 billion in city and state taxes in 2025; Citadel executives say Griffin and firm principals paid $2.3 billion over five years.

Griffin’s move parallels his 2022 relocation of Citadel from Chicago to Miami over crime concerns and dissatisfaction with local leadership. “Looking at what Mamdani just did to me is triggering the trauma I went through in Chicago,” Griffin said.

When asked about the threat Wednesday, Mamdani said he wants “all New Yorkers to succeed” but defended his tax reform agenda, saying the system rewards “extreme wealth while working people are pushed to the brink.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)