President Javier Milei hosted German-US entrepreneur Peter Thiel at the Casa Rosada on Thursday for what Argentina’s leader said was a “wonderful meeting.”
Speaking a few hours after he welcomed Thiel to government house, Milei told the Neura streaming channel that he had discussed a variety of topics with the billionaire investor, including wealth taxes, the agribusiness sector and the future of liberalism.
“It was a wonderful meeting,” Milei said, who said they both view “taxes as theft.”
The La Libertad Avanza leader said the duo did not discuss any specific investment opportunities, though he said Thiel had interests “in the agribusiness sector.” He said the conversation focused more on how to sustain their shared political ideals.
“He is an anarcho-capitalist, just as I am philosophically,” said Milei.
“He acknowledged the achievements and asked how they can be sustained over time,” he added.
“He asked what we were doing to lay the foundations for liberalism to endure regardless of whether I am in the Presidency or not,” said the President.
“I told him that the culture war is what guarantees the long-term outcome,” Milei stated, referring to his campaigns and time in office thus far.
Milei also revealed that Thiel is interested in “becoming president as an anarcho-capitalist,” like himself.
A donor to right-wing causes across the globe, Thiel is a well-known Silicon Valley executive who has regularly voiced public support for Milei.
It was Thiel’s second visit to government house. He first visited in May 2024, accompanied by tech entrepreneur Alec Oxenford, who now serves as Argentina’s ambassador to the United States.
Also present at Thursday’s meeting were Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno, presidential translator Walter Kerr and two of Thiel's associates: Matt Danzeisen, portfolio manager at Thiel Capital, and Matías Van Thienen, partner at Founders Fund.
Little is confirmed about Thiel’s intentions in Argentina. He arrived in Argentina on April 12.
Reports circulating this week said the billionaire investor intends to stay in the country for at least two months and is scouting around for property and real estate, both in Buenos Aires and outside the capital.
Several media outlets reported Thursday that Thiel has purchased a US$12-million mansion in the Palermo Chico neighbourhood of Buenos Aires – one of the most exclusive areas in the capital.
Last week, he reportedly met presidential advisor Santiago Caputo, Deregulation & State Transformation Minister Federico Sturzenegger and attended the River Plate-Boca Juniors Superclásico at the Monumental.
Background
Thiel was a co-founder of PayPal, one of the first major digital payments platforms, alongside figures such as Elon Musk. He later became Facebook’s first major external investor, which consolidated both his fortune and his influence within the tech industry.
The businessman’s net worth exceeded US$9 billion in 2026, according to reporting by Forbes and Bloomberg, though some put his wealth much higher, towards US$30 billion.
Thiel’s fortune mainly stems from his role at PayPal, a well-chosen early investment in Facebook, his equity stake in the data analytics firm Palantir Technologies, and his management of the venture capital fund Founders Fund.
The bulk of his wealth was consolidated in 2020 amid Palantir’s stock market listing. The company’s shares, which provide software to government agencies and large corporations, account for the majority of his liquid net worth.
The investor’s wealth also includes property assets in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Hawaii. These properties amounted to an estimated market value of over US$200 million, although they represented a relatively small share compared with his financial asset portfolio.
Thiel has been variously described as a conservative libertarian and democracy-sceptic authoritarian. He once famously declared: “I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible.”
– TIMES/NA/PERFIL
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