Trump’s Pro-Crypto Picks, Here’s Who’s Holding Bitcoin

President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration includes a mix of GOP politicians, lawyers, and business leaders.

While many of his picks still require Senate approval, several stand out for a shared connection: they have either held crypto directly or indirectly and are bullish on the asset class.

From the nominee for national security advisor to the pick for national intelligence director, several members of Trump’s proposed cabinet and inner circle are or have been crypto holders, according to public disclosures and records reviewed by Decrypt.

Here are the key figures in Trump’s administration who support crypto and, at some point, have had skin in the game.

J.D. Vance, Vice President-elect

U.S. Vice President-elect J.D. Vance holds between $250,000 and $500,000 in Bitcoin, according to federal disclosure forms filed last August. 

In the Senate, Vance has actively supported pro-crypto legislation. He has introduced bills aimed at protecting cryptocurrency firms from being cut off by traditional banks and has criticized the regulatory approaches of agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

In June 2024, he circulated draft legislation proposing a more industry-friendly framework for digital asset regulation, seeking to overhaul how the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversee the crypto market.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Department of Health and Human Services Secretary

As RFK Jr. is not a sitting U.S. congressman, he is not required to disclose his digital asset holdings publicly. 

However, the famous pro-Bitcoin and former presidential candidate has made several recent comments about his extensive holdings of the world’s oldest crypto. 

“I’m a huge supporter of Bitcoin. I was here a year ago at the other Bitcoin conference,” RFK Jr. said at a public event in November, according to a video published on X. “I went home and put most of my wealth into Bitcoin, so I’m fully committed.”

The incoming Trump cabinet member also sang the praises of Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation in a separate post this month. 

“Bitcoin is the currency of freedom, a hedge against inflation for middle-class Americans, a remedy against the dollar’s downgrade from the world’s reserve currency, and the offramp from a ruinous national debt,” RFK Jr. said in the post. 

Kennedy has also criticized current regulatory measures, particularly those under the Biden administration, for being overly restrictive toward crypto. 

“I will end the Biden administration’s war on Bitcoin,” he said in July during the Bitcoin conference in Nashville.

He advocates for a more open regulatory environment to guide innovation and maintain the U.S.’s competitive edge in the global financial landscape.

Michael Waltz, National Security Adviser

Michael Waltz, a Republican U.S. Representative for Florida’s 6th congressional district, has demonstrated a supportive stance toward Bitcoin and the broader crypto sector through both personal investments and legislative actions.

Waltz held between $50,001 and $100,000 in Bitcoin in 2023, per his financial disclosure to the U.S. Congress last year.

He also recently voted for pro-crypto bills such as FIT21 and repealing the SEC’s SAB 121 rule, in addition to co-sponsoring a bill to prohibit the use of Central Bank Digital Currency for monetary policy and other purposes in the U.S., according to digital asset advocacy organization Stand with Crypto. 

Tulsi Gabbard, National Intelligence Director

Former U.S. Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii has invested in at least two cryptocurrencies. In late 2017, she snapped up between $1,000 and $15,000 of Litecoin and Ethereum tokens each, a public disclosure shows. 

While Gabbard no longer holds crypto, per her last disclosure in 2019, she has been critical of government initiatives she perceives as encroachments on financial privacy and autonomy.

She contends that the push towards CBDCs is part of a broader effort by the government to exert control over the populace, undermining the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. 

Elon Musk, co-leader of D.O.G.E

Although not a member of Trump’s cabinet, Musk is undoubtedly quite close to Trump’s camp and, at least publicly, a crypto supporter. 

The co-leader of the newly spun up, Trump-ordained Department of Government Efficiency, whose acronym is identical to the ticker of Dogecoin (DOGE). Musk has frequently expressed support for Dogecoin, referring to it as “the people’s crypto” and influencing its market value.

“I still own a bunch of Dogecoin, and SpaceX owns a bunch of Bitcoin,” Musk said in an X Spaces talk earlier this year.  

Meanwhile, Musk’s Tesla holds 11,509 Bitcoin worth more than $1 billion as of the time of writing, according to Arkham Intelligence data. 

Vivek Ramaswamy, co-leader of D.O.G.E 

As Ramaswamy is a private citizen, he is not required to disclose his crypto holdings publicly. However, the billionaire businessman has a long record of championing crypto and is believed to hold digital assets as well. 

The former long-shot Republican presidential candidate, for example, announced two years ago that he would accept donations in crypto for his campaign at the Bitcoin 2023 conference in Miami.

Ramaswamy has also emphasized the need for clear regulations in crypto. He has criticized the current regulatory approach by agencies like the SEC as “regulation by enforcement,” advocating for a framework that fosters innovation while ensuring consumer protection.

In addition, Ramaswamy’s Strive Asset Management, which manages $1.7 billion in assets, announced in early November that it would add Bitcoin to its clients’ portfolios.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair