Trump’s $1 Billion Crypto Tangle Could Postpone Reform Until 2029
The long-awaited regulation of cryptocurrency from Washington is encountering considerable hurdles due to political tensions, power struggles, and President Trump’s financial interests.
Summary
- A detailed market structure bill aimed at clarifying U.S. crypto regulations might be delayed until 2027.
- Democrats are pushing for measures to bar senior government officials and their families from owning or running crypto enterprises while in office.
- This could have a major impact on Trump, who is anticipated to gain over $1 billion from crypto in 2025.
A detailed market structure bill, intended to clarify U.S. crypto regulation, could see its timeline pushed to 2027, with implementation now possibly deferred until 2029. Discussions in the Senate are currently stalled over Trump’s increasing involvement in crypto and the leverage Democrats possess leading up to the midterm elections, as reported by The Block, citing information from TD Cowen.
Democratic leaders are supporting legislation that would limit senior government officials and their immediate families from participating in crypto businesses during their time in office.
This regulation would directly impact President Donald Trump and his family, who are thought to have amassed over $1 billion from various cryptocurrency ventures since his inauguration on January 20, 2025.
These ventures include World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a DeFi and stablecoin project involving Trump and his three sons as founding members.
The Trump family also invests in bitcoin miner American Bitcoin while launching meme coins Official Trump ($TRUMP) and MELANIA ($MELANIA) just before Trump’s term commenced.
TD Cowen policy analyst Jaret Seiberg indicated that these restrictions would be a “nonstarter” for Trump unless any effective dates are postponed significantly into the future.
A potential compromise might involve the conflict-of-interest provision being enacted three years after its passage, as explained by Seiberg.
Pushing the effective date beyond the next inauguration would practically ensure it never affects Trump.
However, there is a caveat.
“We do not believe Democrats would accept this deal unless it also delayed the entire bill for three years,” Seiberg commented.
Democrats may see little reason to rush
Republicans need 60 votes to bypass a Senate filibuster, necessitating support from at least seven to nine Democrats even with a unified GOP. This scenario allows Democrats the opportunity to delay discussions or completely obstruct progress.
As the 2026 midterms approach, Democrats are likely to regain control of the House. Following the death of Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) on January 6, the current Republican majority is 218–213.
Democrats also stand a chance to bolster their Senate position and may opt to delay the bill’s progression, ensuring they can shape the regulatory framework later.
Postponing enactment to 2027 would likely extend implementation to 2029, after the next presidential inauguration. This timing could allow Democratic regulators to finalize the rules if a Democrat wins the presidency in 2028.
“Time favors enactment as the urgency diminishes if the bill passes in 2027 and takes effect in 2029,” Seiberg observed.
