Republican megadonor Jeff Yass, inner circle give millions to shape schools, courts

• Republican megadonor Jeff Yass and his inner circle have given tens of millions of dollars in recent years to shape federal policy, education and legal matters, according to records reviewed by CNBC.
• The Yass-run foundations have been seeded with hundreds of millions from the billionaire, his wife and others linked to Susquehanna International Group.
• Many of the contributions are to groups advocate for policies that would benefit Yass, his business and those close to him, experts who reviewed the foundations' giving data explained.

Inside one of the largest options trading firms in the world sits a little known charitable foundation, that has quietly donated tens of millions of dollars to influence federal policy, education and law.

The firm and the foundation are twin enterprises of Republican megadonor Jeff Yass, and a small group of allies.

A poker-playing, libertarian billionaire, Yass is the largest individual donor to federal candidates this election cycle, with more than $46 million so far in contributions, according to data from the nonpartisan OpenSecrets.

Yass has given very few interviews and largely avoided publicity. But his charitable giving offers a rare window into his priorities and goals.

The Susquehanna Foundation operates out of the same suburban office building in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, as Susquehanna International Group, the trading firm Yass co-founded, according to tax records.

The foundation is run by Yass and other veteran Susquehanna executives, according to the documents that are current through 2022.

The Susquehanna Foundation is one of two foundations that Yass and his closest friends have funded and led.

The other foundation is even less well known: the Claws Foundation. Similar to