Rep. Maxine Waters criticized Donald Trump’s involvement in various cryptocurrency ventures during a recent U.S. House Financial Services Committee hearing, accusing him of enriching himself at the expense of investors and the public.
On April 9, Waters, a Democratic congresswoman and committee member, raised concerns about Trump’s crypto projects, stating that his personal wealth had increased from $2.3 billion to $5.6 billion. She attributed part of this gain to controversial cryptocurrency ventures. “President Trump has doubled his wealth, from $2.3 billion to $5.6 billion,” Waters stated, highlighting that his fraudulent memecoin lost investors $2 billion, while he and his family pocketed at least $350 million.
Waters specifically referenced the Official Trump token (TRUMP), a memecoin that experienced an 89.93% drop from its January all-time high of $75.35. According to Waters, this memecoin was one of several ventures that helped Trump double his wealth through crypto. She emphasized that the significant decline in the token’s value resulted in substantial losses for investors.
Other Trump-affiliated crypto initiatives mentioned during the hearing included World Liberty Financial. Waters expressed concerns that these ventures might enable foreign or domestic actors to secretly transfer money to Trump and his associates, potentially influencing U.S. policy. “I am deeply concerned that these ventures have created an avenue for interested parties, whether they are allies or adversaries, to anonymously transfer money to him and his inner circle,” she said.
Waters also criticized the congressional subcommittee on digital assets, financial technology, and artificial intelligence for advancing Trump’s crypto interests. She argued that the committee was helping Trump by passing recent legislation that could give him significant control in the crypto market. “This committee is helping Trump. Last week, this committee voted to make Trump the ‘king of crypto,’ by passing legislation that lets him corner the market on stablecoins, kick George Washington off the dollar, and make his own stablecoin legal tender,” Waters stated.
The announcement of a new stablecoin, WLFI USD1, designed to be redeemable for U.S. dollars and backed by short-term U.S. Treasuries, was also referenced by Waters. She warned that regulatory favoritism could benefit Trump, potentially allowing him to gain further control over the crypto market.
Waters, along with Senator Elizabeth Warren, has previously called for rigorous conflict of interest checks on all crypto-related legislation, citing concerns about Trump’s involvement and the deregulatory trend in crypto assets. Both lawmakers have been vocal critics of Donald Trump and the deregulation of crypto assets, demanding that all crypto legislation should pass checks on Trump’s potential conflict of interest.