Days after Katie Zacharia's debut as White House press secretary drew scrutiny, attention has shifted from her qualifications to her husband's past work for an investment firm that operated in North Korea.
Tyler Zacharia, now a film and entertainment executive, spent years working for Beijing-based Schulze Global Investments, with his current employer's biography saying he helped the firm "build teams" in North Korea.
The firm separately made loans to North Korean companies during his tenure, although published reporting does not connect Zacharia personally to those transactions.
The scrutiny follows Katie Zacharia's first White House briefing on Tuesday, when she spent just 14 minutes at the podium and took questions from three outlets. Donald Trump later said he thought she was "very good," while the White House described the appearance as a "commanding inaugural press briefing."
...
Who Is Tyler Zacharia?
Tyler Zacharia has been married to Katie for more than a decade (since 2011), and is now a film producer and entertainment executive serving as chief operating officer of 2521 Entertainment. The couple has four children together.
During her first press conference on October 13, the new press secretary indicated that her family would relocate from California to Washington, D.C.
But before his career in entertainment, Zacharia worked in international private equity. His LinkedIn profile says he studied at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service, later earned an MBA from Pepperdine University, and speaks Mandarin.
What Is Tyler Zacharia’s Connection to North Korea?
According to LinkedIn, Tyler Zacharia worked in Beijing for Schulze Global Investments, subsequently known as SGI Frontier Capital, between August 2007 and July 2013.
His LinkedIn profile describes working on investments in China, Mongolia and Brazil and helping establish operations in Ethiopia and Mongolia, but does not mention North Korea.
However, a biography published by his current employer, 2521 Entertainment, says he helped his former investment firm "build teams" in North Korea.
The biography does not explain what Zacharia's work relating to North Korea involved, whether he traveled or worked there, or whether he had any role in the firm's loans to North Korean companies. Zacharia was based in Beijing during his time at the firm.
In 2011, Forbes reported that Schulze Global made three loans in 2008, each worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, to North Korean mining companies for equipment and expansion.
The same year founder Gabriel Schulze lent another $1 million to finance a North Korean conglomerate’s purchases of corn for its workers.
These dealings occurred while U.S. sanctions were in place, including Executive Order 13466 signed by President George W. Bush in 2008 and Executive Order 13570 signed by President Barack Obama in 2011. Despite this, there is no indication in the published reporting that the loans resulted in a sanctions violation or enforcement action. Forbes' reporting said Gabriel Schulze consulted U.S. sanctions lawyers and filed notices with the Treasury before lending.
Zacharia left SGI Frontier Capital in 2013 and now works in the entertainment industry. The publicly available biographies reviewed do not identify any current work involving North Korea.
A source familiar with the situation told Newsweek: "The Press Secretary was not professionally affiliated with Schulze Global Investments," adding that, "during the time that Katie Zacharia’s husband worked at the company, SGI was in full compliance with all U.S. investment policies as it pertains to foreign companies."
Newsweek reached out to Tyler Zacharia via 2521 Entertainment via email for comment.
What Is Schulze Global?
Schulze Global Investments is a private-equity/investment firm founded by Gabriel Schulze. It specialized in investing in frontier and emerging markets, particularly in Asia and Africa. It was subsequently known as SGI Frontier Capital. Contemporary SGI material describes SGI Frontier Capital as "formerly Schulze Global Investments."
On November 1, 2018, Cerberus Capital Management, founded by billionaire and Trump-appointed deputy secretary of defense Stephen Feinberg, announced that it had acquired SGI Frontier Capital.
Cerberus described the transaction as a "strategic acquisition" intended to advance its investment activities in emerging and frontier markets.
Schulze is now senior managing director and co-head of Cerberus Frontier. His official Cerberus biography says he leads the firm's private investment activities in frontier markets and is based in Dubai.
Newsweek reached out to Cerberus Capital Management via email for comment.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: John Fitzpatrick and Paul Donnelley.