Mariya Mujahid
Associate Editor
Loyola University Chicago School of Law, JD 2026
On the campaign trail in 2024, the then-former president Trump made his ties to the crypto industry clear, such that crypto leaders were optimistic about the future in terms of regulations. Upon his entry into office, President Trump solidified this stance by signing an executive order: “Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology.” This executive order lightens the regulations on crypto currencies and promotes the presence of crypto in the American economy. Some industry leaders, however, are hesitant about the President’s actions.
Trump’s views pre-presidency
At the Bitcoin 2024 Conference in Nashville, then-nominee Trump promised to increase electricity production in the United States so it could catch up to other countries in terms of mining bitcoin. Additionally, he made promises to shut down Operation Chokepoint 2.0, the alleged effort by the United States government to staunch banks’ cooperation with cryptocurrency. While this operation is not an official, publicly declared program, letters from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) that asked a bank to pause crypto-related activity pointed to a government effort to restrict cryptocurrency. Then-nominee Trump also promised to create a Bitcoin and crypto “presidential advisory council” and particularly stated that federal agencies should “cease and desist” their actions against crypto.
Post-inauguration actions
Three days after his inauguration on January 23rd, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) called Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology. This EO called for allowing individuals and private entities to access and use open public blockchain networks for lawful purposes without undue interference, encouraging the development of lawful dollar-backed “stablecoins”, strengthening the position of the United States dollar in the global digital economy, and lastly ensuring fair and open access to banking services for all law-abiding citizens and entities. Additionally, the EO established a working group called the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets, which is to be run by certain government officials or their designees like the Secretary of the Treasury, Attorney General, the Secretary of Commerce, and others.
What the EO means for regulation
Overall, this EO is considered a win by crypto companies. The main reason for this is because the proposed regulations arising from the working group are not geared towards enforcement, but rather towards organizing cryptocurrency and helping it make sense. Crypto industry leaders are also optimistic about establishing a national crypto stockpile, looking to the working group to create some kind of criteria for a stockpile.
Additionally, the Trump administration rolled back an EO from the Biden administration that encouraged development of a central back digital currency, a win for the crypto industry. Crypto leaders are excited for the chance that crypto will be pushed into the mainstream by Trump’s new regulatory goals. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is also bolstered by the Trump admin’s EO. On January 23rd, the same day that Trump’s EO was signed, the SEC revoked Staff Accounting Bulletin 121, which required entities to record crypto assets as a liability. This bulletin was touted as an anti-crypto measure, since it “tied crypto companies in regulatory knots”, and represented the Biden administration’s regulatory approach to crypto. The new SEC has also launched a crypto task force led by Commissioner Hester Pierce, who is seen as pro-crypto because she dissented when the SEC rejected a bitcoin exchange-traded fund. This task force seeks to “ foster a regulatory environment that protects investors, facilitates capital formation, fosters market integrity, and supports innovation,” which points to an SEC that will employ an open approach crypto, rather than former commissioner Gensler’s enforcement actions. Despite these actions and the crypto industry’s optimism, Trump’s lack of understanding of crypto may disadvantage the industry.
$TRUMP
Right before his inauguration, Trump announced his own crypto coin, $TRUMP. To some, this signaled an all-encompassing embrace of the crypto industry. To others, however, it showed Trump’s lack of true support for the industry. $TRUMP is considered a “meme coin” which is a form of crypto that is more volatile, given that it is not tied to any kind of value, merely some kind of keepsake for a fan. The existence of meme coins represent the “scammier” part of the industry and, according to an industry leader, a “perfect bribery vehicle”.
Will the industry’s hope last?
Cryptocurrency is already a volatile industry, with controversy after controversy. The industry is in desperate need of regulations. Even President Trump’s administration putting positive regulations in place in opposition to enforcement actions would be preferable to the situation at hand: a president with little understanding of the industry he is embracing with open arms. President Trump has already blurred the lines in terms of conflict of interest, and this bumbling approach to an already dangerous industry does not look well for democracy.