Byron Donalds, an ally of President Donald Trump, launched his campaign for governor of Florida in 2025 and is seeking to succeed Governor Ron DeSantis in the 2026 election. At his campaign event, Erika Donalds introduced him before he took the stage, according to The Associated Press.
The reviewed documents include screenshots from Panama’s Public Registry showing the Fundación Eco Agro Turismo with initial assets of $10,000 and Erika Donalds listed among the board members, along with Clifton Fred Lees and María Herrera Villalobos. The image of the Panamanian document also identifies Mossack Fonseca & Co. as the resident agent.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists’ Offshore Leaks database lists Fundación Eco Agro Turismo as an entity incorporated in Panama on February 21, 2006, with Mossack Fonseca as agent, linked to Costa Rica and with a “defaulted” status after having been deactivated in 2008. A Panamanian business database also lists Erika Donalds, Clifton Fred Lees, María Herrera Villalobos, Foundation Management Co. Inc., and Mossack Fonseca & Co. among the names associated with the foundation.
Screenshots of messages shared with the documents claim that authorities such as the UAF, the FBI, and the Security Council were reviewing an alleged cross-border network. However, the materials provided do not include independent official confirmation of those investigations, nor a formal accusation against Erika Donalds or Byron Donalds.
An interim financial intelligence report dated April 14, 2026, states that the initial review, focused on two people and a single corporate entity, expanded to identify more than 40 entities and more than 30 affiliated individuals across multiple jurisdictions. The document describes an “unusually complex” corporate architecture around Erika Donalds, Optima, OptimaED, CEN, and associated educational networks, although it clarifies that the file still does not conclusively prove the final destination of all examined funds.
The report also points to two main financial issues: a $4.5 million construction loan and bond issuances linked to the Optima Classical Academy at Gladiolus Campus Project for $28.62 million, as well as a taxable tranche of $530,000. According to the document, the central problem is that it cannot be determined with confidence which entity received, controlled, or holds the funds.
Public financial disclosure records from the House of Representatives show that Byron Donalds filed an amendment for fiscal year 2023 on August 13, 2025. That disclosure lists spousal interests in Onesto, LLC, linked to Optima Management Services, LLC and OptimaEd, LLC, each in ranges of $1 million to $5 million.
The interim report argues that OptimaEd would not be a peripheral entity, but rather a central point of financial intake and operational control. According to the document, audited financial statements indicate that a school managed by OptimaEd incurred $1.08 million in service fees payable to that company during the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023.
The document also mentions offshore indicators related to an “Optimax” lead connected to the Bahamas and an entity on the Isle of Man, Optima Education International Limited, incorporated in April 2025. The report warns that these elements do not prove irregularities by themselves, but they raise the risk profile because of the possible difficulty in tracing beneficial ownership, control, and the destination of funds.
The same report emphasizes that there is no direct evidence, in the reviewed material, that bond or loan proceeds were deposited directly into personal accounts. Instead, it recommends a second phase of analysis focused on payment routes, transfers, links between signatories, offshore structures, and reconciliation among bond documents, loans, and corporate records.
So far, the material raises questions of transparency and corporate control, but it does not constitute a judicial determination or a criminal accusation. For a definitive publication, it would be necessary to obtain comments from Byron Donalds, Erika Donalds, OptimaEd, Panamanian authorities, and U.S. federal agencies.
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