By Tom Wilson
(Reuters) – Cryptocurrency supporters and holders will soon influence U.S. policy on emerging technology after a series of appointments and advisory appointments by President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Monday.
The crypto industry has spent years battling lawsuits and enforcement actions from the U.S. government. He hopes the new Trump administration will mark a policy shift.
Political appointees will be screened for potential conflicts. Some have committed to selling their interests.
The industry is hosting a sold-out ball in Washington on Friday, with tickets ranging from $2,500 to $10,000. David Sacks, Trump’s artificial intelligence and crypto czar, is expected to attend.
Below are some facts about the crypto positions of key members of the new administration and Trump’s inner circle.
SCOTT BESSENT
A billionaire hedge fund manager, Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary has spoken favorably about crypto.
“Crypto is about freedom and the crypto economy is here to stay,” he told Fox News in July. “I think everything is on the table with Bitcoin.”
According to a financial disclosure filed last month, Bessent owns shares in a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund BlackRock (NYSE:) worth between $250,001 and $500,000. Bessent will divest his interest in the fund and his other investments within 90 days of his confirmation, he wrote to the U.S. Treasury last week.
Bessent did not respond to a request for comment.
HOWARD LUTNICK
Trump’s pick for Commerce Secretary is a strong supporter of Bitcoin.
Lutnick is CEO of the New York brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald, which earns fees for managing billions of dollars of U.S. Treasuries for , the company that issues the eponymous stablecoin.
“Do I own bitcoin? Of course I do,” Lutnick said at the 2024 conference in July. “Does Cantor Fitzgerald own Bitcoin? A bunch of Bitcoin.”
Lutnick did not respond to a request for comment.
ELON MUSK
The head of Tesla (NASDAQ:) and the world’s richest man, chosen by Trump to oversee a government cost-cutting effort, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, has long championed crypto, including bitcoin and dogecoin.
His public comments and his companies’ actions have in recent years influenced the price of Bitcoin and Dogecoin, a smaller token designed as a joke during a previous crypto bubble.
The acronym for DOGE, Musk’s cost-cutting agency, is a nod to dogecoin, which is now the world’s seventh-largest crypto token based on its $4.5 billion circulation, according to data provider CoinGecko.
In 2021, Tesla purchased $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin, becoming one of the largest companies to own cryptocurrencies before selling most of its holdings. It held unspecified digital assets totaling $184 million as of September 2024, according to a company financial report.
Musk did not respond to a request for comment sent through Tesla on what crypto assets he may hold.
VIVEK RAMASWAMY
Set to work with Musk at DOGE, the former presidential candidate and entrepreneur is the founder of Strive Asset Management.
Strive, which said in September it manages more than $1 billion in assets, filed last month to launch an exchange-traded fund that invests in corporate bonds for bitcoin investments.
The company’s wealth management arm, launched in November, seeks to integrate bitcoin into Americans’ investment portfolios, Ramaswamy said in a press release.
As of June 2023, Ramaswamy held between $100,001 and $250,000 worth of bitcoin and between $15,001 and $50,000 worth of smaller token ether, according to a financial disclosure.
He did not respond to a request for comment.
DAVID BAGS
A former PayPal (NASDAQ:) executive, Sacks was named artificial intelligence and crypto czar at the White House in December, tasked with developing a U.S. legal framework long sought by the crypto industry.
Sacks is co-founder of venture capital firm Craft Ventures. The company has invested in crypto companies including BitGo and Bitwise, as shown on its website.
Sacks did not respond to requests for comment.
STEVE WITKOFF
Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, a real estate mogul and donor to the new president, founded crypto firm World Liberty Financial in November.
World Liberty, which sells a proprietary token, lists Trump on its website among those entitled to a significant share of the company’s revenue.
Witkoff did not respond to requests for comment.
ERIC TRUMP, DONALD TRUMP JR., BARRON TRUMP
Eric Trump told Reuters last year that he was heavily involved in World Liberty, that he, his older brother Don Jr. – considered the most influential family member in the presidential transition – and his half-brother Cadet Barron helped train.
Eric told a Bitcoin conference in December that the technology was a “financial revolution” and that his father would make the United States the crypto capital of the world.
JD (NASDAQ:) VANCE
United States Vice President-elect Vance held between $250,001 and $500,000 in bitcoin as of August 2024, according to a financial disclosure.
The venture capital firm Vance co-founded, Narya, has invested in Strive, Ramaswamy’s asset management company, and video platform Rumble, its website says.
In November, Rumble announced that it would allocate its excess cash reserves to bitcoin. The company also received a $775 million investment from stablecoin company Tether last year.
Asked about the crypto positions of Vance and Trump’s sons, Trump-Vance transition spokesman Brian Hughes said — without providing evidence — that Washington bureaucrats had sought to stifle innovation with more regulation and higher taxes.
“President Trump will deliver on his promise to encourage American leadership in crypto and other emerging technologies,” he said in a statement to Reuters.
PAUL ATKINS
Atkins, a lawyer and former top SEC official, is Trump’s choice to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission and has advocated for deregulation. He is expected to take a softer approach to crypto than current President Gary Gensler.
Atkins is a managing director at Patomak Global Partners (NYSE:), a consulting firm. Patomak advises “cutting-edge crypto-native businesses” and traditional financial firms on how to “leverage digital assets for growth,” its website states.
Atkins did not respond to a request for comment.
