The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has obtained approximately $2.4 billion from his investments in cryptocurrencies since entering the sector in 2022, according to estimates from The New Yorker. These earnings show a diversification of the Trump family's income sources in cryptocurrencies and raise new concerns for the Commander in Chief who oversees the regulation of the industry in the United States.
According to the report, Trump has earned approximately $14.4 million from his collections of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), $412.5 million from token sales through World Liberty Financial, $243 million from cryptocurrency deals with the United Arab Emirates, $13 million from the Bitcoin mining company American Bitcoin, $1.3 billion from the treasury company BTC Trump Media and Technology Group, and $385 million from Trump's official memecoin.
In general, Trump's investments in cryptocurrencies represent 43.5% of his known personal wealth accumulated during his political career, according to the report. However, it is important to note that while these investments are linked to Trump, they may not reflect his direct involvement, as the operations are often managed by advisors or family members.
This shift is notable given Trump's previous skepticism towards the cryptocurrency industry. In 2019, he publicly criticized cryptocurrencies for their price volatility and expressed concern about their potential use in illegal activities.
▫️Potential conflicts of interest and political responses
Trump's investments in cryptocurrencies raise new concerns about conflicts of interest. Democratic lawmakers have already insisted on the issue, organizing protests against the memecoin and the president's USD1 stablecoin. Furthermore, they have called for investigations and a possible impeachment, although this seems unlikely given the Republican control in the legislature.
After Trump announced a dinner in Washington, DC for the largest holders of his memecoin in May, two Democratic senators responded, warning that the offer of such access could potentially violate various federal ethical laws and constitutional provisions, including the federal bribery statute and the emoluments clauses of the United States Constitution.
“It also raises the troubling possibility that foreign actors are using the memecoin as a vector to buy influence with President Trump and his associates without needing to reveal their identities publicly,” the senators said.
Under the Trump administration, several government agencies have changed their stance regarding the cryptocurrency industry. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dismissed pending investigations or enforcement actions against many cryptocurrency companies, such as Coinbase and Uniswap, and efforts have been made to end the de-banking of cryptocurrency companies nationwide.
