Source: Cointelegraph.com NewsThe first 100 days of the administration of US President Donald Trump have deeply impacted the crypto industry, starting with his own memecoin and culminating in a Bitcoin reserve and a spate of blockchain policymaking.\u00a0
\nTrump\u2019s trade war with the entire world has had the largest short-term impact on crypto markets, as crypto prices have wavered amid macroeconomic worry and uncertainty. Higher prices on electronics mean Bitcoin (BTC) miners are finding it harder to break even, and de-dollarization concerns abound.\u00a0
\nStill, crypto markets have shown some resilience and cause for optimism in the administration\u2019s crypto-friendly policies. A number of pro-crypto leaders have been appointed to key government agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The crypto industry\u2019s long-awaited regulatory framework is also imminent.
\nTrump\u2019s first 100 days have seen remarkable changes for the crypto industry, and it appears that things are only getting started. Here\u2019s a look at what\u2019s happened so far.
\nJan. 20 \u2014 Trump\u2019s first 100 days kick off with a memecoin
\nOn Jan. 20, while Trump was sworn into office in the rotunda of the Capitol Building, his family\u2019s crypto investment firm, World Liberty Financial (WLFI), launched its second token sale of WLFI tokens.
\nMassive demand saw prices initially spike, though the true value of the tokens, if any, is yet to be determined, as WLFI is currently not transferable and cannot be traded on any exchanges.\u00a0
\nThe memecoin served as a kickoff for Trump\u2019s crypto agenda, which has seen unprecedented support for the industry in Washington, DC, along with a slew of moral and ethical concerns among observers and lawmakers.\u00a0
\nRelated: Trump\u2019s WLFI crypto investments aren\u2019t paying off
\nJan. 20 \u2014 Pro-crypto leaders head up federal agencies on \u201cday one\u201d
\nThe president of the US sets the tone for several federal regulators, including those overseeing crypto. Trump immediately set out to appoint a number of pro-crypto lawyers and businessmen to head up the SEC, the CFTC and other critical federal agencies.
\nTrump nominated businessman Paul Atkins to lead the SEC on \u201cday one\u201d of his presidency. Atkins would replace Gary Gensler, who was perceived by many in the crypto industry as an enemy to adoption and the industry\u2019s progress.\u00a0
\nAlso on day one, Trump appointed businessman and crypto investor David Sacks as chair of the President\u2019s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology \u2014 or the crypto and AI \u201cczar.\u201d
\nAtkins wouldn\u2019t be confirmed by the Senate until April 9 and sworn in on April 21. But in the meantime, Trump also tapped former CFTC Commissioner and crypto proponent Brian Quintenz to head up that agency.\u00a0
\nJan. 21 \u2014 $500-billion Stargate AI initiative\u00a0
\nIn a press conference, Trump announced a $500-billion private-led AI infrastructure investment called \u201cStargate.\u201d The president claimed the project \u2014 led by ChatGPT creator OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle \u2014 would create some 10,000 American jobs.
\nTrump said the US needed to lead the world in AI innovation and keep development onshore. \u201cChina is a competitor, others are competitors. We want it to be in this country, and we\u2019re making it available,\u201d he said.
\nOpenAI claimed that the project would \u201cnot only support the re-industrialization of the United States but also provide a strategic capability to protect the national security of America and its allies.\u201d
\nJan. 21 \u2014 Pardon for Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht\u00a0
\nTrump announced on Truth Social that he had called the family of Silk Road 2.0 founder Ross Ulbricht after commuting his sentence.
\nAfter his arrest in 2013, Ulbricht was sentenced to life in prison in 2015 without the possibility of parole for his role in facilitating the trafficking of narcotics and other illicit substances.\u00a0
\nUlbricht\u2019s case became a rallying point for libertarian movements and prison reform advocates alike. Libertarian-minded crypto advocates supported Ulbricht, as his platform was one of the first places people could actually spend Bitcoin.\u00a0
\nCrypto advocates supported Ulbricht, with many believing he did nothing wrong. Source: The Bitcoin HistorianFreeing Ulbricht was one of the many campaign promises Trump made to the crypto community.
\nJan. 23 \u2014 Ban on digital dollar, establishing a crypto working group
\nWith an executive order, Trump established an internal working group to focus on making the US \u201cthe world capital in crypto.\u201d The order also prohibited \u201cthe establishment, issuance, circulation, and use\u201d of a US central bank digital currency (CBDC).\u00a0
\nCBDCs are a contentious issue in the crypto community, with many privacy activists claiming that they are another form of state surveillance and government control. Enthusiasm over their creation from central bankers has further set the more libertarian-minded crypto community against their creation.
\nTrump signing the executive order. Source: ABC NewsThe working group would kickstart the process for creating the forthcoming US Bitcoin and crypto reserves.\u00a0
\nFeb. 1 \u2014 Trade war begins with tariffs on Mexico, China and Canada
\nOne of the promises of the Trump campaign was to rectify the \u201cbad deals\u201d that the US had with many of its oldest allies and most important trading partners.\u00a0
\nJust over a week after he was sworn into office, Trump announced sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, citing border security concerns and the supposed proliferation of cross-border trade of fentanyl from those countries.\u00a0
\nThe same day, Canada announced retaliatory measures. On Feb. 3, Mexico promised to step up security of its northern border, responding to American requests for increased patrols. This led Trump to reverse initial tariff plans on both countries.\u00a0
\nThe unexpected hostile tariffs from a close partner and ally sent stock and crypto prices tumbling. They marked the beginning of the macroeconomic uncertainty that has come to characterize the early days of the Trump administration.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Feb. 12 \u2014 Vinnik-Foegel prisoner swap with Russia Source: Cointelegraph.com NewsThe first 100 days of the administration of US President Donald Trump have deeply impacted the crypto industry, starting with his own memecoin and culminating in a Bitcoin… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128199"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=128199"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128199\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=128199"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=128199"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cryptospotters.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=128199"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nAlexander Vinnik, the convicted money launderer who funneled Bitcoin stolen in the infamous Mt. Gox hack through his crypto exchange BTC-e, returned to his home country of Russia.
\nVinnik pled guilty to money laundering conspiracy charges in 2024. BTC-e processed more than $9 billion in transactions and had over 1 million users worldwide, many of whom were in the US.
\nVinnik was exchanged for American schoolteacher Marc Fogel, who was teaching at the Anglo-American School of Moscow and had been in a Russian jail since 2021 after being arrested for illegal possession of cannabis.
\nFeb. 18 \u2014 Bankman-Fried makes veiled plea for release
\nIn an interview with The New York Sun, the former CEO of now-defunct crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, addressed his controversial political contributions, saying the Republican Party was always \u201cfar more reasonable.\u201d
\nBankman-Fried, or SBF, made widely publicized contributions to the Democratic Party as he purportedly tried to influence democratic policymakers\u2019 approach to the digital asset industry. It later became known that SBF was playing both sides of the aisle, donating significant funds to Republicans, though the exact amount remains unknown.\u00a0
\nIn the interview, SBF likened his position to that of Trump, claiming that he\u2019d been unfairly treated by the criminal justice system. SBF called into question the conduct of the federal judge overseeing his trial, Judge Lewis Kaplan. \u201cI know President Trump had a lot of frustrations with Judge Kaplan. I certainly did as well.\u201d
\nObservers saw the interview as an attempt to elicit a pardon from Trump. Roger Ver, an early Bitcoin advocate facing criminal tax evasion charges, has made an outright appeal.
\nMarch 7 \u2014 Trump establishes Bitcoin reserve and crypto stockpile
\nOn March 7, the 46th day of Trump\u2019s presidency, he signed an executive order establishing a \u201cStrategic Bitcoin Reserve.\u201d Trump made big promises about crypto adoption on the campaign trail, including the possibility of a long-sought-after Bitcoin reserve.
\nThe US reserve, however, would fall short of expectations among Bitcoin maximalists. Rather than create a concrete plan for the US government to purchase and hold Bitcoin, it merely created a single reserve to pool all Bitcoin the government had seized during criminal proceedings.
\nWhile the order does state that the government may purchase additional Bitcoin, it must do so in a budget-neutral fashion.\u00a0
\nIn tandem with the Bitcoin reserve, Trump also established a US Digital Asset Stockpile containing other cryptocurrencies such as Ether (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP (XRP) and Cardano (ADA).
\nMarch 7 \u2014 White House Crypto Summit
\nLeaders of the crypto industry descended on Washington for a meeting at the White House to discuss a wide range of topics related to crypto regulation and the development of the industry in the US.
\nAttendees included Strategy executive chairman Michael Saylor, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and \u201ccrypto czar\u201d David Sacks.\u00a0
\nWhile some attendees, including Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov, were optimistic about the event\u2019s focus on strengthening the US crypto industry, some crypto luminaries who were not on the list were less impressed.
\nCardano and IOHK co-founder Charles Hoskinson, who did not attend the event, noted in a video stream that real change \u2014 i.e., legislation \u2014 must be made in Congress.
\n\u201cEverybody focuses on the White House because it\u2019s simple and easy to do so. […] And as much as we, as an industry, want this to be a short process, it\u2019s going to be a long and methodical process,\u201d Hoskinson said.Others put it more simply:
\nSource: George Mandrik
\nMarch 25 \u2014 WLFI goes stablecoin
\nWLFI expanded its offerings in March with the soft launch of its stablecoin USD1. The coin, \u201c100% backed by short-term US government treasuries, US dollar deposits, and other cash equivalents,\u201d launched on the Ethereum and BNB Chain networks.
\nNews of the token\u2019s launch came just days after WLFI secured more than $500 million by selling its own WLFI tokens.US lawmakers subsequently called for an ethics probe into WLFI and cited the president\u2019s ability to influence stablecoin policy as a major conflict of interest with the project.\u00a0
\nRelated: Atkins becomes next SEC chair: What\u2019s next for the crypto industry
\nApril 2 \u2014 Liberation Day
\nDoubling down on his belligerent trade policy, Trump levies tariffs on all US trade partners on what he dubs \u201cLiberation Day.\u201d At a special event at the White House, Trump signed an executive order levying reciprocal tariffs on every country with a tariff on US goods, starting at a 10% minimum.
\nMarkets saw a spate of red across the board following the order, and many economic observers raised concerns over a looming recession. Crypto miners based in the US were further squeezed as their operation costs, namely for buying new mining rigs, increased significantly. Former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci told Cointelegraph, \u201cI would say that he\u2019s had the worst 95 days in modern presidential history. The markets recovered a little, but we\u2019ve got $9 trillion taken from the stock market. You had a growing economy that\u2019s now heading into a medium-sized recession, possibly a steep recession.\u201d
\nHe said that Trump declared a trade war \u201cwithout any real weaponry\u201d and subsequently lied about progress when the president claimed China was attempting to negotiate.\u201cThe lies are ok \u2014 everyone accepts that he\u2019s a congenital liar […] but when you\u2019re declaring war on people and then you\u2019re lying, it\u2019s really bad.\u201d
\nApril 25 \u2014 $300,000-per-plate memecoin dinner raises call for impeachment
\nTop Trump memecoin holders were reportedly offered an opportunity to have dinner with the president, sparking renewed concerns over his crypto project and prompting one US lawmaker to support impeachment.\u00a0
\nAt a town hall meeting in his home state of Georgia, Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff said he \u201cstrongly\u201d supports impeachment. \u201cWhen the sitting president of the United States is selling access for what are effectively payments directly to him, there is no question that that rises to the level of an impeachable offense,\u201d he said.
\nTRUMP holders can register to have dinner with the President. Source: gettrumpmemes.comRumors on social media stated that $300,000 would grant tokenholders an audience with the president, a claim the Trump administration later denied.
\nTrump\u2019s first 100 days could jeopardize change
\nThe first 100 days of Trump\u2019s presidency have brought unprecedented change to the crypto industry. Simultaneously, they have opened it up to increased criticism and controversy as the president\u2019s personal ties with blockchain projects raise ethical questions.\u00a0
\nThese controversies may well jeopardize the industry\u2019s efforts to effect change in Congress, according to Scaramucci, who said, \u201cTrump has so inflamed everything that he\u2019s made it even hard for [stablecoin legislation] to happen.\u201d
\nThe STABLE Act, which aims to provide guardrails for stablecoin issuance in the US, was introduced in the House of Representatives on March 26 and passed a committee vote on April 3, with prominent Democrats dissenting. The bill will soon head to the floor for a general vote before going to the Senate.
\nThe Senate\u2019s GENIUS Act has recently made headway, passing a vote in the Banking Committee, largely along party lines.
\nMagazine: Bitcoin $100K hopes on ice, SBF\u2019s mysterious prison move: Hodler\u2019s Digest, April 20 \u2013 26Read More<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"