First-ever pro-crypto U.S. administration: bummer or slowburner?

July 14, 2025, marks the beginning of Crypto Week in D.C. The event signals that the administration continues its work on regulating (and sometimes deregulating) the crypto space. The results of the first half of 2025 indicate little to no easy wins for the industry, but some advances in place can’t be ignored.

Rare wins

One of the promises Trump made during his campaign was a full pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the Silk Road marketplace. Charged with engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, money laundering, and drug trafficking, he was sentenced to life in prison in 2013 following his arrest in Manhattan.

Ulbricht was among the first to create a high-scale business accepting Bitcoin, playing a major role in Bitcoin’s grassroots adoption.

While Ulbricht admitted his brainchild turned out to be harmful—as it facilitated fatal overdoses for many—he remained a symbolic hero for many early bitcoiners who believed 12 years served in prison was enough to pay for his crimes.

Indeed, at the end of his first day in office, Trump signed a full, unconventional pardon for Ross, a move lauded by the crypto community.

Ross wasn’t the only one who could breathe a sigh of relief thanks to the new administration. BitMEX co-founders Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed, charged with financial crimes, were pardoned too. Now, the developers of Bitcoin mixers accused of money laundering hope for a more favorable outcome, as they didn’t launder money and only created the tool used by criminals and law-abiding citizens. The pardon of early Bitcoin evangelist Roger Ver, charged with tax fraud, was reportedly discussed by Elon Musk while serving in the Department of Government Efficiency. Still, it doesn’t appear that Ver’s fate is significant for the POTUS.

Once anti-crypto Gary Gensler resigned from his position as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission following Trump’s inauguration, the SEC became one of the most crypto-friendly agencies in the U.S. The agency used a combination of executive actions and guidance to create a smoother path for U.S. cryptocurrency businesses to develop in a loose and predictable legal environment. More than that, the SEC welcomed crypto business leaders and experts to help shape new industry rules.

A Crypto Task Force created in January 2025 is working to provide U.S. crypto entrepreneurs and innovators with a much-needed framework. Names like Hester Peirce, Mark Uyeda, and Paul S. Atkins are associated with the positive shift in the legal status of cryptocurrency. The old-fashioned application of securities laws to cryptocurrencies caused significant trouble for the industry, an approach left behind in 2025. The memecoins’ status changed to “collectibles,” paving the way for less restrictive business in that sector.

The SEC in 2025 dropped several enforcement actions started during the Gensler era. It discontinued legal battles with Coinbase, Ripple, and other key industry players.

Challenges and disappointments

Another of Trump’s campaign promises was the creation of a Bitcoin stockpile, which echoed Sen. Cynthia Lummis’ plan to create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.

Many failed to realize how different these two plans were. Trump’s vision, which materialized on March 6, 2025, via executive order, meant the creation of a Bitcoin stockpile composed of seized bitcoins held by the U.S. government (around 200,000 BTC). The reserve may be topped up through budget-neutral methods.

Lummis’ plan (and respective bill) proposed the U.S. purchase one million bitcoins over five years. The crypto community lauded this plan, but it did not come to fruition. Instead, Trump’s version was seen as a disappointment by some, as it simply rebranded seized bitcoins as a “reserve.”

On top of that, Trump’s order stipulated that an audit of U.S. Bitcoin holdings would be carried out. The audit was due in April, but there have been no updates on the results.

Trump opposed work on central bank digital currencies, citing privacy concerns and expressing preference for stablecoins issued by private companies rather than government institutions. However, he did emphasize the need for clearer regulation of stablecoins. The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, or GENIUS Act, is intended to shape this framework. Some believed it would be adopted in the spring, but the legislation took longer to finalize.

Although the GENIUS Act was conceived as a bipartisan effort, during House discussions, Democrats suddenly pushed to include clauses restricting sitting U.S. presidents and other top officials and their families from participating in the cryptocurrency business. While they did not succeed, the bill’s adoption was delayed.

The president’s family’s involvement in the crypto industry is a concern shared by both Trump’s critics and some supporters. Trump, his wife Melania, and his sons Eric and Donald are reportedly behind ventures such as World Liberty Finance, memecoins Official Trump and Melania, the mining company American Bitcoin, and other ventures, using their influence as a privilege in the sector. Bloomberg estimates that Trump’s crypto gains reach $620 million at a minimum. Democrats continue their efforts to dismantle Trump’s crypto empire.

How have the Trump Administration’s efforts in crypto regulations already influenced the industry?

According to Carter Razink, co-founder of the company building stablecoin-backed rewards Spree Finance, the current influence can be described as having both hard and soft impacts. The hard impact is pro-crypto legislation such as the GENIUS Act, which gives stablecoins a definitive, trillion-dollar regulatory runway. The soft impact is that founders no longer fear “Operation Chokepoint 2.0”-style debanking—building the future of finance on U.S. soil now feels safe and even encouraged.

Raznik says:

“Together, these forces recalibrate the risk profile for digital-asset startups and tilt the scales back toward American innovation. As history shows, when the U.S. hosts the tech giants, it gains disproportionate geopolitical clout. Pairing that technology scale with financial leverage positions America to dominate the next wave of financial technology.

We’re already seeing this unfold at Spree Finance, where on-chain stablecoins power rewards programs that work and feel like airline miles or credit card points. The more usable and well-regulated these stablecoins become, the more they’ll bridge traditional finance and the next generation of digital money.”