TLDR
- Trump’s White House Crypto Summit brings together over 20 industry leaders to discuss crypto regulation
- An executive order established a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve using seized assets
- Industry leaders including Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong and Robinhood’s Vlad Tenev are confirmed attendees
- Key discussions focus on regulatory clarity and future legislation
- The reserve will be capitalized with bitcoin from government seizures at no cost to taxpayers
President Donald Trump is set to host the first-ever White House Crypto Summit on Friday, March 7, 2025, bringing together more than 20 key industry leaders.
The event marks a major step in the administration’s efforts to make the United States the “crypto capital of the world.”
The summit comes just one day after Trump signed an executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. This order directs the government to maintain bitcoin seized through criminal and civil asset forfeiture proceedings.
JUST NOW!
President Trump signs an Executive Order establishing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/N9p2sQknVS
— Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) March 7, 2025
Industry executives invited to the White House include Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, MicroStrategy Chairman Michael Saylor, and Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev. Other attendees include Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov.
🚨SCOOP: The @CFTC CEO Forum on digital assets hosted by Acting Chair @CFTCpham just wrapped.
Here’s who attended the confab: @paoloardoino, @Tether_to CEO@bgarlinghouse, @Ripple CEO@ivanhodl, @moonpay CEO @kris, @cryptocom CEO
Heath Tarbert, President @circle… https://t.co/O1qDs0WmrS pic.twitter.com/smdYoiG4O2
— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) March 6, 2025
The meeting is led by White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks. It runs from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm ET (6:30 pm to 10:30 pm UTC), according to those invited to attend.
Armstrong, who played a major role in Trump’s election victory, expressed his gratitude ahead of the summit. “My goal in attending this is really just, first of all, to thank President Trump for helping make the United States the crypto capital of the world,” he told CNBC.
The Coinbase CEO helped the crypto sector raise and direct $250 million into the 2024 election cycle. This outpaced traditional donors like Wall Street banks and the oil industry.
For Armstrong, new legislation is the top priority. “From our point of view, the next step in the United States that’s the most urgent is getting legislation passed,” he said, pointing to stablecoin regulation and broader market reforms.
The summit follows Trump’s executive order creating two separate government crypto holdings. The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will hold only bitcoin, while other digital assets will go into a Digital Asset Stockpile managed by the Treasury Department.
This marks the U.S. government’s first formal recognition of bitcoin as a strategic asset. The reserve will be funded exclusively through bitcoin seized in criminal and civil cases.
The government’s bitcoin holdings are estimated at around 200,000 bitcoin. Sacks confirmed that the government will not sell any bitcoin from the reserve.
Robinhood’s Tenev has emerged as a vocal advocate for tokenization. He argues that blockchain technology can open private markets and break down barriers to investment in valuable private companies.
“Crypto technology can unlock new ways to trade and invest in all assets, from digital to real-world,” Tenev told CNBC. “Tokenization will transform investing, but we need regulatory clarity to make it happen.”
Tenev wants to reform current SEC rules that limit private market investments to accredited investors. These are typically people with over $1 million in net worth or $200,000 in annual income.
Chainlink’s Nazarov sees blockchain as key to maintaining U.S. financial dominance. “Really what matters for financial systems is assets,” he said, adding that the U.S. must ensure key markets are tokenized.
For BTC Inc. CEO David Bailey, understanding the size of the country’s bitcoin ownership is a priority. “One is to figure out how much bitcoin America holds, and what we can do as an industry to help the government secure it,” he said.
Bailey is also pushing for bitcoin-backed Treasury bonds. He believes mixing bitcoin reserves with U.S. bonds could create new demand by giving investors exposure to bitcoin’s performance.
Armstrong indicated that Coinbase would be willing to serve as a crypto custodian for the government. “We’re always happy to continue doing that,” he said, noting that the company already works with various parts of the government.
Criticism from Dems
The move has faced some criticism from Democrats. Senator Elizabeth Warren sent a letter to Sacks raising conflict-of-interest concerns and questioning whether he had advance knowledge of Trump’s initial announcement.
Sacks responded earlier this week on social platform X. He stated that he sold “all my cryptocurrency and my crypto-focused funds” before joining the administration.
I sold Multicoin too. I didn’t even have to at that point in time because the ethics process was still underway. But I took it upon myself to sell all my cryptocurrency and my crypto-focused funds. I suggest you wait for all the facts before making baseless and hysterical smears. https://t.co/FaTNzNCRez
— David Sacks (@DavidSacks) March 4, 2025
After the summit, many attendees will regroup at an off-the-record event hosted by Coinbase. Armstrong sees this as part of a longer effort to promote crypto adoption worldwide.
“The fight for crypto here is more urgent than ever,” Armstrong said. “If the U.S. leads on this front, I think the rest of the G20 could be pretty inspired by it.”
The Treasury Department must now conduct a full audit of the government’s bitcoin holdings. This step will clarify exactly how much bitcoin the U.S. currently possesses.
Industry leaders are optimistic about working with an administration that views crypto as a mainstream asset class. They hope for a straightforward regulatory process that provides clarity on oversight and regulation.
