The cryptocurrency landscape of the Trump administration

Author: Jessy, Golden Finance

The day of Trump's official inauguration is getting closer. He has also nominated members of his new cabinet whom he favors. There is no doubt that Trump and some of his nominated cabinet members are crypto-friendly individuals.

Thanks to the crypto-friendly stance of the Trump administration, combined with the U.S. interest rate cuts, the crypto industry has officially entered a bull market.

For instance, with projects closely tied to the Trump family, WLIF has been continuously buying tokens such as AAVE, LINK, and ENA, all of which have seen significant price increases.

The upcoming market trends have also become quite clear. As U.S. regulations on crypto become more defined, DeFi-related projects will likely become one of the main narratives of the next bull market. The Trump family's ongoing bets on DeFi projects are a manifestation of this trend.

In terms of policy, the "21st Century Financial Innovation and Technology Act" is likely to pass, which will clearly define when cryptocurrencies are considered commodities or securities. If the act specifies that certain tokens are deemed decentralized and functional, they will be classified as digital commodities and exempt from SEC regulation, provided they meet certain centralization criteria. This will encourage DeFi projects to evolve towards greater decentralization. Additionally, the act requires the SEC and CFTC to study the development of DeFi, assess its impact on traditional financial markets, and explore potential regulatory strategies, which will attract more DeFi projects to "return" to the U.S., promoting the prosperity and development of the DeFi market.

Based on this regulatory change in the U.S., DeFi has become an important narrative in this bull market.

So, what projects are Trump and his cabinet members buying and supporting? What does this indicate about the future direction of crypto development?

Trump:

His Business Involvement in Crypto

WLFI:

World Liberty Financial (WLFI) is a crypto project endorsed by the Trump family, officially launching on September 16, 2024. Trump claims to be the Chief Crypto Advocate for the World Liberty Financial project.

Trump's two eldest sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, serve as Web 3 ambassadors for World Liberty Financial, while his 18-year-old son Barron Trump is the DeFi visionary for the project.

The project's white paper indicates that Trump will occasionally promote the project. In return, companies under Trump's name will receive 75% of the project's revenue.

The project primarily focuses on building lending services, such as a credit account system based on Aave and the Ethereum blockchain, as well as a decentralized cryptocurrency trading venue. The governance token for the project is WLFI.

Currently, the project is still in the public sale phase, having sold 1/4 of its tokens and raised $75 million.

WLFI has also been continuously purchasing tokens from other projects. In the past period, its purchases are as follows:

• ETH: Spent $30 million to buy 8,105 ETH over the past 12 days, at an average price of $3,701.
• AAVE: Purchased 6,137 AAVE at an average price of $324.
• LINK: Bought 78,387 LINK at an average price of $25.5.
• ENA: Acquired 509,955 ENA at an average price of approximately $0.981.
• Ondo: Bought 134,216 ONDO tokens at an average price of approximately $1.86.
• CB BTC: Purchased 103 CB BTC at a unit price of $97,181.

The tokens purchased by WLFI are primarily related to DeFi projects, highlighting the ambition of the WLIF project, which aims to build an on-chain lending platform and an on-chain trading platform. The tokens it has acquired include stablecoins, collateral lending, RWA, oracles, and wrapped Bitcoin, essentially covering all aspects of on-chain DeFi.

With Trump's ascension to power and the gradual clarification of U.S. regulations, DeFi is likely to enter a phase of robust development.

Other Business Layouts in the Crypto Field

Companies under the Trump family are also actively laying out crypto businesses. For instance, the Trump family owns the crypto exchange "World Liberty Financial," and their social platform "Truth" has submitted an application to create a crypto payment service named "truthfi." They are also planning to acquire the crypto service company Bakkt, all of which are closely related to virtual currencies.

Trump's cryptocurrency holdings:

According to Trump's wallet holdings, the token he holds the most is TROG, a type of Meme Coin, with ETH ranking second in his portfolio, where he owns over 495 ETH, valued at $1.99 million. Additionally, he holds over 478 WETH, valued at $1.93 million.

Some Meme Coins in his wallet, such as Trump, are primarily obtained through airdrops, while Ethereum comes from donations received during his presidential campaign and commissions from sales of related NFTs, including some profits from WLFI sales.

Trump's wallet also contains mainstream tokens like Matic, although the source is uncertain.

In terms of politics, Trump aims to make the U.S. a crypto-friendly nation, starting with making Bitcoin a national reserve and then establishing a series of policies and regulations to support the development of the crypto industry.

Most of Trump's cabinet members are also crypto-friendly individuals or hold cryptocurrencies themselves.

Trump Administration Cabinet Members' Crypto Holdings

Trump's cabinet includes 15 cabinet ministers and several cabinet-level officials, totaling around 20 people.

Among these 20 individuals, at least six are crypto-friendly, with several publicly stating their cryptocurrency holdings. These individuals include:

David Sacks

He was appointed by Trump as the head of AI and cryptocurrency affairs at the White House and also serves as the chairman of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

He has a very positive attitude towards crypto, and his venture capital firm, Craft Ventures, has made numerous investments in the cryptocurrency space, covering infrastructure, CeFi, DeFi, NFT, and more, including projects like dydx and Lightning Labs.

Sacks' role as the head of AI and cryptocurrency affairs at the White House will help lead the implementation of Trump's campaign promise to relax regulations on the cryptocurrency industry. He will act as a direct contact between cryptocurrency advocates and the White House, as well as a liaison between Trump, Congress, and federal agencies dealing with digital assets, promoting the formulation and implementation of relevant policies to create a more favorable policy environment for the cryptocurrency industry.

Currently, public records indicate that he holds at least Bitcoin and Solana.

Bitcoin: In 2012, David Sacks began investing in Bitcoin and adopted a "set it and forget it" long-term holding strategy, viewing Bitcoin as a tool to hedge against fiat currency inflation and censorship.

Solana: In October 2021, David Sacks revealed in a podcast that he holds a significant amount of Solana. Even after the FTX collapse in 2022, which caused turmoil in the crypto market, he did not sell his Solana holdings and firmly believes in its potential to surpass Ethereum in the future.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Nominated by Trump as the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

He believes that cryptocurrencies are a good hedge against inflation and considers Bitcoin to be the "perfect base currency." He hopes to make the U.S. the global center for cryptocurrencies and has proposed a series of policy suggestions, such as exempting capital gains tax on converting Bitcoin to dollars and backing the dollar with hard assets like Bitcoin. He also plans to promote budget transparency by placing the entire U.S. budget on the blockchain to enhance transparency and accountability, allowing every American to view budget items at any time to prevent corruption and misuse of funds.

It has been disclosed that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s family trust holds Bitcoin valued between $100,000 and $2.5 million, and he personally purchased 21 Bitcoins during his campaign, buying 3 Bitcoins for each of his children, demonstrating his support for cryptocurrencies through actual investment.

Howard Lutnick

Nominated by Trump as the Secretary of Commerce, and if confirmed, he will also directly oversee the work of the U.S. Trade Representative's office.

He believes that Bitcoin has decentralized value and is the only asset that cannot be taken away by anyone. He also advocates that Bitcoin should be treated as a commodity, similar to gold and oil.

Lutnick is a strong supporter of the stablecoin Tether, and his company Cantor Fitzgerald not only holds undisclosed shares of Tether but also manages Tether's vast reserve assets, which are mostly in the form of U.S. Treasury bonds.

On July 27, 2024, at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Lutnick announced a $200 million Bitcoin loan program to provide leverage for Bitcoin holders.

Tulsi Gabbard

Nominated by Trump as the Director of National Intelligence.

In 2019, Tulsi Gabbard signed a bill aimed at preventing the SEC from regulating cryptocurrencies. She believes that this bill will protect investors, promote innovation, and bring more diverse business opportunities to her region, advancing the U.S. in the digital economy.

In 2023, Tulsi Gabbard publicly criticized the Biden administration's exploration of central bank digital currencies at the Bitcoin 2023 conference. She believes that central bank digital currencies would record transaction information, increasing the risk of surveillance on ordinary Americans, thereby threatening the freedom and economic autonomy of the public.

She emphasized that Bitcoin, as a decentralized cryptocurrency, has the characteristic of being unmanipulable by third parties, preserving the privacy and freedom of cash transactions in the digital world, and thus believes that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin have positive significance for social development.

According to public documents from December 2017, she held Ethereum and LTC valued between $1,000 and $15,000, though it is unclear if she still holds them.

Conclusion

As the first U.S. president to openly support the crypto industry, Trump is not only actively holding crypto assets but also expanding his business interests into the crypto field. From selling NFTs in earlier years to currently engaging in DeFi projects and acquiring exchanges, Trump's involvement in the crypto industry is becoming increasingly profound.

Not only is he deeply involved in the crypto industry from a business perspective, but after becoming president, the strategic Bitcoin reserve in the U.S. is highly likely to become a reality. Coupled with his push for crypto legislation, relaxing regulatory measures, and establishing dedicated institutions and positions for crypto, it is evident that this will facilitate better coordination between the government and the crypto industry, allowing the crypto sector to operate under a legal framework in a relatively relaxed environment.

The cabinet members chosen by Trump are also largely representatives of crypto-friendly policies. Although the SEC chair Paul Atkins, whom he selected, has not publicly disclosed any cryptocurrency holdings, he is indeed a firm supporter of cryptocurrencies. It is expected that under his leadership, there will be a review of several rules and court enforcement actions under Gary Gensler, adopting a more lenient approach towards cryptocurrencies and seeking regulatory reforms aimed at promoting capital formation, creating a more favorable regulatory environment for the crypto industry.

Some cabinet members, even those nominated for positions unrelated to economics, have also clearly expressed their support for cryptocurrencies. As policymakers, only those who truly hold virtual currencies will create genuinely crypto-friendly policies.

Currently, based on the holdings of Trump and some cabinet members, as well as the expansion of their crypto landscape, it can be seen that the U.S. may invest significantly in the DeFi sector.