Warren Demands Financial Transparency from Trump's Crypto Czar Ahead of White House Summit
Senator Elizabeth Warren has formally requested that David Sacks, President Trump's recently appointed cryptocurrency advisor, publicly disclose his financial interests amid concerns about potential conflicts of interest in the administration's new crypto initiatives.
In a letter sent Thursday, Warren (D-Mass.) called for Sacks to release details of any financial disclosures filed with the government. The request came after President Trump signed an executive order establishing a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and just before today's inaugural White House Crypto Summit, which Sacks is chairing.
Warren, a long-standing cryptocurrency skeptic who previously vowed to build an "anti-crypto army," specifically asked for information on how Sacks plans to "prevent the President and other private individuals from directly profiting off of the Trump Administration's efforts to selectively pump the value of certain crypto assets, drop crypto asset-related enforcement actions and deregulate the crypto asset industry."
The senator's concerns follow Sacks' recent confirmation that he divested all his cryptocurrency holdings—including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana—before Trump took office. Sacks, currently undergoing an official ethics review, has publicly addressed allegations about his investments.
"I had a $74k position in the Bitwise [fund], which I sold on January 22. I do not have 'large indirect holdings,'" Sacks stated in response to online claims. "I'll provide an update at the end of the ethics process."
Sacks later confirmed he also sold his stake in crypto investment firm Multicoin Capital, adding: "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."
Warren's inquiry seeks specific details, including:
- Whether Sacks has filed financial disclosures with the Office of Government Ethics
- Exact dates when Sacks and his company, Craft Ventures, divested from crypto-related investments
- Who had prior knowledge of Trump's Sunday announcement about the U.S. Crypto Strategic Reserve
- Whether any federal employees purchased crypto assets in the weeks before the announcement
The senator also criticized the Securities and Exchange Commission for dropping legal cases against major crypto firms like Coinbase, Robinhood, and Kraken. She separately expressed concern over the SEC declaring that most memecoins are not securities—a move Warren claims could benefit speculative assets, including Trump's official token.
"These actions have the potential to benefit billionaire investors, Trump Administration insiders, and speculators at the expense of middle-class families," Warren alleged.
President Trump's executive order, signed Thursday, establishes a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve using approximately 200,000 Bitcoin (valued at $18 billion) currently owned by the federal government through various forfeitures. The order directs Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to develop "budget-neutral strategies" for acquiring additional Bitcoin without additional taxpayer costs.
The order also creates a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile for cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin that have been forfeited through criminal or civil proceedings. Despite Trump's earlier statements, the government plans to limit this stockpile to assets obtained through forfeitures rather than making additional purchases.