Exiled Chinese billionaire and Steve Bannon bestie Guo Wengui pulled the strings of the so-called “alternative” social media platform prior to his arrest in a sweeping billion-dollar fraud investigation earlier this month, The Washington Post reports. In a dominant financing role not previously reported, Guo held sway over Gettr from before its 2021 launch until earlier this month, former employees told the Post. His authority reportedly allowed him to influence hiring, business partnership, and content decisions at the company, which doled out $50,000 to Bannon’s “War Room” podcast, according to internal documents reviewed by the Post. The Daily Beast first reported Guo’s involvement as an original Gettr investor in 2021. An unidentified ex-employee alleged to the Post that the 52-year-old dissident tycoon was the company’s main and possibly only source of funding. Former Gettr chief executive Jason Miller “had this line, ‘Gettr is backed by an international consortium of investors,’” the person said. “It was very clear it was not true. I don’t think there was any other investor.”