Author: Jessy, Golden Finance
The day Trump takes office is getting closer. He has also nominated members of his new cabinet whom he is optimistic about. There is no doubt that Trump and some of the cabinet members he nominated are all crypto-friendly individuals.
Thanks to the crypto-friendly stance of the Trump administration and the U.S. interest rate cuts, the cryptocurrency industry has officially entered a bull market.
For example, as the project WLIF, which is highly bound to the Trump family, continues to buy tokens such as AAVE, LINK, and ENA, these tokens have seen considerable growth.
The upcoming market trends have also become very clear. With the gradual clarification of U.S. regulation on cryptocurrency, DeFi-related projects will likely become one of the main lines in the next bull market. The Trump family's continuous bets on DeFi projects are also a manifestation of this trend.
In terms of policy, the (21st Century Financial Innovation and Technology Act) is likely to pass. Once the bill is passed, it will clearly define when cryptocurrencies are considered commodities or securities. If the bill specifies that related tokens are determined to be decentralized and functional, they will be regarded as digital commodities and not subject to SEC regulation, and if they meet the requirements for centralization, they may be eligible for an exemption period. This will encourage DeFi projects to evolve towards a more decentralized direction. Moreover, the bill requires the SEC and CFTC to study the development of DeFi, assess its impact on traditional financial markets and potential regulatory strategies, which will attract more DeFi projects to 'return' to the U.S., promoting the prosperity and development of the DeFi market.
It is precisely based on this regulatory change in the U.S. that DeFi has become an important narrative in this round of the bull market.
And Trump, along with related projects and his cabinet members, are buying which projects and supporting which projects? What does this indicate about the future direction of cryptocurrency development?
Trump:
Its business landscape's involvement in cryptocurrency
WLFI:
World Liberty Financial (WLFI) is a cryptocurrency project endorsed by the Trump family, officially launched 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 of World Liberty Financial.
In the project's white paper, it states that Trump will occasionally promote the project. In return, Trump's company will receive 75% of the revenue from the project.
The project mainly focuses on building lending services, such as a credit account system based on Aave and the Ethereum blockchain, as well as a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange. The governance token for the project is WLFI.
Currently, the project is still in the public sale phase, having sold 1/4 of the tokens, and has raised 75 million dollars.
And WLFI has been continuously purchasing tokens from other projects. In the past period, the purchasing situation is as follows:
ETH: In the past 12 days, a total of $30 million was spent to purchase 8,105 ETH at an average price of $3,701.
AAVE: Purchased 6,137 AAVE at an average price of $324.
LINK: Purchased 78,387 LINK at an average price of $25.5.
ENA: Purchased 509,955 ENA at an average price of approximately $0.981.
Ondo: Purchased 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.
WLFI mainly buys DeFi-related projects, which also demonstrates the ambition of the WLIF project itself, as it aims to build a lending platform on-chain and includes an on-chain trading platform. The tokens it has purchased include stablecoins, collateral lending, RWA, oracles, and wrapped Bitcoin projects, basically covering all aspects of on-chain DeFi.
And with Trump's rise to power, the U.S. regulation is gradually clarifying, and DeFi is likely to enter a stage of vigorous development.
Other business layouts in the cryptocurrency field
Companies under the Trump family are also actively laying out cryptocurrency businesses. For example, the Trump family owns a cryptocurrency exchange called 'World Liberty Financial', and its social platform 'Truth' submitted an application to create a cryptocurrency payment service named 'truthfi', and plans to acquire the cryptocurrency service company Bakkt. These business layouts are closely related to virtual currency.
Trump's cryptocurrency holdings:
According to the holdings of Trump's wallet, the token he holds the most is TROG, a type of Meme Coin, with ETH ranking second in his investment portfolio, having over 495 ETH worth 1.99 million dollars. Additionally, he holds over 478 WETH worth 1.93 million dollars.
Some Meme Coins in his wallet, such as Trump, are basically obtained through airdrops, while Ethereum is from donations accepted during his presidential campaign and commissions earned from the sale of related NFTs, including some shares from WLFI sales.
Trump's wallet also contains mainstream tokens like Matic, but the source is uncertain.
In terms of politics, Trump also aims to make the U.S. a crypto-friendly country, starting with making Bitcoin a national reserve and then establishing a series of policies and regulations that facilitate the development of the crypto industry.
And the cabinet members of Trump are also basically crypto-friendly individuals, or they themselves hold cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency holdings of cabinet members in the Trump administration
Trump's cabinet members include 15 cabinet ministers and some officials at the cabinet level, totaling around 20 people.
Among these 20 people, there are at least six who are crypto-friendly, and many have publicly stated that they hold cryptocurrencies. These individuals are:
David Sacks
He was appointed by Trump as the head of AI and cryptocurrency affairs at the White House, while also serving as the chairman of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
He has a very positive attitude towards cryptocurrency, and his venture capital firm Craft Ventures has made numerous investments in the cryptocurrency field, covering various areas such as infrastructure, CeFi, DeFi, NFTs, etc., including projects like dydx and Lightning Labs.
Sacks' position as the head of AI and cryptocurrency affairs at the White House will help lead the realization of Trump's promise to relax regulations on the cryptocurrency industry during his campaign. He will serve 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 secure a friendlier policy space for the cryptocurrency industry.
Currently, according to public information, he holds at least Bitcoin and Solana.
Bitcoin: In 2012, David Sacks began investing in Bitcoin and adopted a long-term 'set it and forget it' holding strategy. He views Bitcoin as a tool to hedge against inflation of fiat currency and censorship.
Solana: In October 2021, David Sacks revealed on a podcast that he holds a large amount of Solana. Even after the FTX collapse in 2022 that triggered 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 U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.
He believes that cryptocurrency is a good way to hedge against inflation and considers Bitcoin to be the 'perfect base currency'. He hopes the U.S. will become the global center for cryptocurrencies, for which he proposed a series of policy suggestions, such as exempting capital gains tax when 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 and prevent corruption and misuse of funds.
It has been disclosed that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s family trust holds Bitcoin valued between 100,000 to 2.5 million dollars, and he personally purchased 21 Bitcoins during his campaign and bought 3 Bitcoins for each of his children, demonstrating support for cryptocurrency through practical investments.
Howard Lutnick
Nominated by Trump as the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, if the nomination is confirmed, he will also be directly responsible for the relevant work of the U.S. Trade Representative's Office.
He believes that Bitcoin has values such as decentralization 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 staunch supporter of the stablecoin Tether, and his company Cantor Fitzgerald not only holds undisclosed shares of Tether but also manages Tether's massive reserve assets, most of which exist in the form of U.S. Treasury bonds.
On July 27, 2024, at the Bitcoin 2024 conference held in Nashville, Tennessee, Lutnick announced the launch of 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 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from regulating cryptocurrencies. She believes that this bill will protect investors, promote innovation, and bring more diverse business opportunities to her region, advancing the development of 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 will record transaction information, increase monitoring risks for ordinary Americans, and threaten people's freedom and economic autonomy.
She emphasizes that Bitcoin, as a decentralized cryptocurrency, has characteristics that cannot be manipulated by third parties and preserves the privacy and freedom of cash transactions in the digital world. Therefore, she believes that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have a positive significance for social development.
According to public documents from December 2017, he held Ethereum and LTC valued between $1,000 to $15,000, though it is unclear if he still holds them.
Summary
As the first U.S. president to openly support the cryptocurrency industry, Trump not only passively or actively holds crypto assets himself but is also actively involved in the crypto field through his business ventures. From selling NFTs in the early years to currently engaging in DeFi projects and acquiring exchanges, Trump's participation in the cryptocurrency industry has become increasingly profound.
Not only is he deeply involved in the cryptocurrency industry in the business sector, but after becoming president, the U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve is highly likely to become a reality. Coupled with his efforts to promote cryptocurrency legislation, relax regulatory measures, and establish dedicated institutions and positions for cryptocurrencies, it is evident that this will better coordinate the relationship between the government and the cryptocurrency industry, allowing the cryptocurrency industry to operate under legal frameworks and in a relatively relaxed environment.
The cabinet members chosen by Trump are also basically representatives who are friendly to cryptocurrency. Although the SEC Chairman Paul Atkins he selected has no public records showing he holds virtual currency assets, he is indeed a staunch supporter of cryptocurrency. Everyone expects that after he takes office, he will review multiple rules and court enforcement actions under Gensler, adopt a more lenient attitude toward cryptocurrency, and seek rule changes aimed at promoting capital formation to create a more favorable regulatory environment for the crypto industry.
And some cabinet members, although the positions they were nominated for are not related to economics and so on, have clearly expressed their support for cryptocurrency. As policy makers, only those who truly hold virtual currencies can create genuinely crypto-friendly policies.
Currently, based on the holdings of these Trump and some cabinet members and the expansion of the crypto landscape, it can be seen that the U.S. may invest significantly in the DeFi track.