Gillibrand Seeks Ban on Presidential Crypto Profits

On Aug. 23, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand demanded a legal ban preventing presidents, their spouses and senior officials from issuing, sponsoring or profiting from cryptocurrency while holding office. She made an enforceable ethics provision a condition of her support for pending market-structure legislation on digital assets and criticized proposals that leave enforcement solely to the Justice Department. Gillibrand said: “There must be an enforceable ban, and any market structure bill that leaves enforcement solely in the hands of the president’s own Justice Department and allows him to profit from crypto isn’t a reform. It’s a permission slip.”

A poll conducted Aug. 14-17 among 1,166 U.S. adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points, found 63% of respondents called Trump-family cryptocurrency profits inappropriate and 32% called them appropriate. The same survey found 69% believe the president allows private business interests to influence his decisions, including about half of Republican respondents. The White House rejected claims of impropriety, saying independent financial firms manage the president’s investments, and the president has said he does not handle day-to-day family business operations.

Federal financial disclosures certified June 30 by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics reported more than $1.4 billion in crypto-related income for 2025 linked to the Trump family. The filings attributed much of that amount to a family-linked venture called World Liberty Financial and to a Trump-branded meme coin. Earlier disclosures for the year listed $636 million from a meme coin as the largest single reported income item.

The dispute over enforceable ethics language has become part of the Senate debate over the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, sometimes called the CLARITY Act, which would divide oversight of digital assets among federal market regulators. Supporters say the bill would provide clearer federal supervision. Critics, including some Senate Democrats and committee minority staff, say the current bill text leaves an ethics-enforcement gap and raises concerns about securities-law gaps, risks to pension funds, potential illicit-finance loopholes, taxpayer exposure and weakened consumer protections. Several senators have called for stronger provisions on ethics, consumer protection, illicit finance, conflicts of interest and market integrity.

The CLARITY Act faces a cloture vote on the Senate floor on Sept. 15 at 2:15 p.m. EDT; 60 votes are required to advance. With Republicans holding 53 seats, supporters would need seven Democratic or independent votes if all Republicans back the motion, though leadership could alter the schedule or withdraw the motion.

Gillibrand has supported federal rules for digital assets rather than opposing cryptocurrency. She has co-authored bipartisan legislation and earlier proposed rules focused on elected officials and their spouses issuing or sponsoring digital assets, including meme coins. She expanded that focus to include profiting from cryptocurrency and senior officials, saying promotion by officeholders can create financial conflicts. Gillibrand added: “I will not vote to hand this president, or any president, a taxpayer-backed license to get rich off the office.”