Chipotle distances itself from Bill Ackman after – Business News
Chipotle distanced itself from billionaire hedge funder Bill Ackman after he mentioned he donated $10,000 to a fundraiser for the ICE agent who fatally shot a Minneapolis protester — igniting online calls to boycott the fast-casual Mexican food chain wherein his firm was as soon as a main investor.
“Bill Ackman is not affiliated with Chipotle,” the company mentioned in a one-sentence assertion posted Monday on Threads, an uncommon public disavowal that illustrated the sensitivity round Ackman’s political activism and his long, high-profile historical past as an investor within the burrito giant.
The assertion got here after Ackman’s title surfaced as the highest donor to a GoFundMe set up in assist of Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who killed left-leaning “warrior” Renee Nicole Good final week in Minneapolis.
Billionaire hedge fund supervisor Bill Ackman, a former main Chipotle shareholder, sparked backlash after donating $10,000 to a fundraiser backing an ICE agent concerned in a deadly Minneapolis capturing. AFP through Getty Images
Ackman later confirmed the donation on X, calling the episode “a tragedy” and saying the officer was “doing his best to do his job.”
He described Good as “a protester who likely did not intend to kill the officer but whose actions in a split second led to her death.”
Bill Ackman confirmed donating $10,000 to a GoFundMe supporting ICE agent Jonathan Ross, calling the capturing of a Minneapolis protester “a tragedy.” Gofundme
The donation sparked instant backlash online, with activists and progressive figures urging shoppers — apparently underneath the misimpression Ackman was the proprietor of that his hedge fund was nonetheless an investor — to boycott the chain.
“Don’t eat at Chipotle. The guy who owns it just gave $10000 to the man who killed Renee Good,” a Threads person incorrectly wrote Monday. “Let’s boycott this restaurant.”
Chipotle’s assertion on Ackman got here in response to that post.
Chipotle mentioned Bill Ackman is “not affiliated” with the chain after his donation to an ICE agent’s fundraiser ignited online requires a boycott. Christopher Sadowski
X noticed a quantity of related calls for boycotts from Ackman-hating customers.
Left-leaning writer and activist Shannon Watts blasted the billionaire’s donation as “reward money for shooting a mother of three in the face.”
Ackman as soon as loomed giant over Chipotle’s boardroom.
I’m large believer in our legal principal that one is harmless till confirmed guilty. To that finish, I supported the @gofundme for Jonathan Ross and meant to equally assist the gofundme for Renee Good’s household (her gofundme was closed by the time I tried to supply…— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) January 12, 2026
In September 2016, his hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, disclosed a 9.9% stake within the chain, investing more than $1 billion as Chipotle was reeling from food-safety scandals and collapsing gross sales.
The investment made Pershing Square one of Chipotle’s largest shareholders and marked one of Ackman’s most distinguished activist bets.
Ackman pushed aggressively for modifications, urgent for board turnover and management reforms as he sought to engineer a turnaround on the embattled chain.
An ICE agent fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good during an enforcement operation in Minneapolis final week. Facebook/ODU English Department
His affect peaked within the years that adopted as Chipotle overhauled management and strategy, finally delivering a dramatic rebound in gross sales and stock price.
But that relationship has steadily unwound.
Ackman as soon as held a 9.9% stake in Chipotle and performed a key position in its turnaround, however his hedge fund totally exited the stock in late 2025. REUTERS
Ackman step by step decreased Pershing Square’s stake through the years, paring back his publicity as Chipotle’s valuation soared and the fund locked in good points.
By late 2025, Pershing Square had exited totally.
On a third-quarter earnings call in November, Chipotle confirmed that Ackman’s fund had bought its remaining shares, formally ending almost a decade of involvement.
The Post has sought remark from Ackman and Chipotle.
