The New York Times: Trump Is Driving Crypto Toward a Capital Frenzy

In mid‑December, The New York Times’ David Yaffe‑Bellany and Eric Lipton described how President Donald Trump’s explicit embrace of digital assets has unleashed a rush of capital, lobbying, and new business models across Wall Street and Web3. Their piece, “What Trump’s Embrace of Crypto Has Unleashed,” opens with a detail that captures the moment: over the summer, a group of executives pitched a crypto strategy to Anthony Scaramucci, the financier and former Trump adviser—one vignette among many illustrating how politics and tokens now mix in plain sight. (Read the Times listing via RealClearMarkets.) (realclearmarkets.com)

From campaign slogan to governing agenda

What was once campaign rhetoric is now policy instrument. On January 23, 2025, the White House issued the executive order “Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology,” which, among other things, prohibits a U.S. central bank digital currency and directs agencies to produce a comprehensive digital‑asset framework within 180 days. The order explicitly recognizes citizens’ rights to use public blockchains and self‑custody. (Official text: White House; Federal Register.) (whitehouse.gov)

That policy signal was followed by Congress passing the GENIUS Act, the first federal statute establishing guardrails for dollar‑backed stablecoins—a key on‑ramp between traditional capital and on‑chain markets. (See the bill page on Congress.gov.) Together with an SEC pivot that industry reads as more facilitative, these moves turned 2025 into a banner year for U.S. crypto firms, even if broader “market structure” legislation remains stalled in the Senate. (Background: Reuters overview; SEC spot‑bitcoin ETP approval; Ether listing rule approvals.) (congress.gov)

Regulatory plumbing matters for capital formation. After green‑lighting spot bitcoin ETPs in January 2024, the SEC approved exchange rule changes for spot ether ETPs in May 2024, and in July 2025 moved to permit in‑kind creations/redemptions for crypto ETPs and expand listed options—incremental steps that reduce frictions for larger asset managers. (SEC press materials; coverage on CNBC and the WSJ.) (sec.gov)

What a “capital frenzy” looks like in 2025

• Politics‑native tokens and memecoins: Trump‑themed coins exploded in visibility early in the year, minting outsize gains for a few wallets while leaving hundreds of thousands of retail addresses underwater—a classic boom‑bust pattern amplified by celebrity branding and social media. Chainalysis data cited by CNBC found that while a small set of wallets booked eight‑figure profits, roughly 764,000 wallets lost money on the $TRUMP memecoin. (Investor protection voices at the SEC have also signaled meme tokens won’t enjoy special shelter.) (cnbc.com)

• A stablecoin supply chain for global deals: The administration’s friendlier tone coincided with a surge of private‑sector stablecoin experiments, including those tied—directly or indirectly—to Trump‑aligned ventures. Media reporting traced how Abu Dhabi’s MGX selected USD1, a new dollar‑pegged token from World Liberty Financial, to settle a $2 billion Binance transaction—drawing scrutiny because of its novelty and political entanglements. (See reporting in Forbes and the Guardian; market‑infrastructure update in CoinDesk.) (forbes.com)

• Wall Street’s tokenization flywheel: The year also saw real‑world‑asset tokenization break into the financial mainstream. BlackRock’s tokenized liquidity fund BUIDL, launched on Ethereum in March 2024, expanded across multiple chains and crossed billion‑dollar AUM milestones, underscoring demand for on‑chain Treasuries. JPMorgan launched a tokenized money‑market fund for qualified clients, while research tallied the RWA tokenization market at roughly $24 billion by mid‑year. (BlackRock announcements; WSJ/Business Insider coverage of JPMorgan; CoinDesk and Forbes on RWA totals.) (prnewswire.com)

If you’re a builder or investor, that’s a potent cocktail: permissive signals from Washington, investable wrappers that plug into brokerage accounts, and institutional‑grade tokenization rails. The Times reporters are right to call it a new phase—capital is organizing itself around the expectation that crypto rails are now a national priority. (realclearmarkets.com)

The upside and the catch

Trump’s embrace moved markets and lobbyists, but it also sharpened old risks in new packaging:

• Moral hazard and conflicts: Politically connected tokens and stablecoins can blur lines between public policy and private gain. Even if activities are lawful, concentration and opacity (e.g., who holds reserve assets, who captures protocol fees) magnify tail risks for retail participants. (Context: Reuters’ 2025 wrap; Guardian/Forbes reporting on politically linked deals.) (reuters.com)

• Retail froth and memecoin mechanics: Meme tokens can incorporate transfer fees and opaque vesting that funnel trading revenue to insiders. Chainalysis‑cited data shows the distributional outcomes are extreme—few winners, many losers—so “DYOR” must include reading token contracts, not just roadmaps. (Analysis summarized by CNBC.) (cnbc.com)

• Bridge and cross‑chain risk: As stablecoins and tokenized funds expand to multiple networks, attack surfaces multiply. That’s why protocols are leaning on hardened interoperability (e.g., CCIP) and conservative reserve attestations. (Implementation notes via CoinDesk.) (coindesk.com)

• Policy whiplash: Reuters notes the core market‑structure bill to define when tokens are securities vs. commodities is still stuck in the Senate. If politics swing in 2026, key exemptions and enforcement posture could swing too. Builders should design for jurisdictional portability and compliance by construction. (reuters.com)

What enterprises and advanced users should do next

1. Map your exposure to U.S. policy pivots

• For token issuers: Track SEC rulemakings and the promised “innovation exemption,” and plan for disclosures consistent with commodity‑style oversight even if you don’t view your token as a security. (Reuters overview; SEC ETP actions as a barometer.) (reuters.com)

• For stablecoin treasurers: The GENIUS Act raises the bar on reserves and attestations. Treat audit cadence, custodian risk, and jurisdictional constraints as competitive features, not costs. (Congress.gov bill page.) (congress.gov)

2. Expect “TradFi on‑chain” to keep compounding
   Bitcoin and ether ETP plumbing, plus tokenized T‑bill rails, are pushing traditional allocators toward crypto market microstructure. Watch for in‑kind creations, listed options, and mixed bitcoin/ether ETPs to deepen liquidity and compress spreads—conditions that historically precede institutional adoption. (SEC statements and press releases.) (sec.gov)

3. Treat memecoins like venture lottery tickets, not savings
   Behavioral volatility plus fee mechanics mean position sizing and exit rules matter more than narratives. The SEC’s stance signals there won’t be a “nanny state” backstop for $TRUMP‑like tokens. (CNBC coverage; SEC posture.) (cnbc.com)

4. Prioritize self‑custody and segregated key management
   Capital frenzies attract phishing, fake airdrops, and smart‑contract traps. Keep long‑term holdings in cold storage; use hot wallets with strict allowances for experimental DeFi; and enforce OS‑level hygiene (Yubi‑style 2FA, unique passphrases, no SMS). If you hold assets across multiple ecosystems (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana), maintain separate accounts and limit cross‑chain approvals.

As a hardware wallet brand, OneKey follows a simple principle that aligns with Section 1 of the January 23 executive order: protect the right to self‑custody on open blockchains. For readers who are navigating newly listed ETPs on a brokerage while also holding spot assets on‑chain, a OneKey setup provides:

• Secure element and offline signing for long‑term BTC and ETH storage, plus multi‑chain support for assets benefiting from 2025’s tokenization wave.
• Open‑source firmware and auditable code paths to reduce supply‑chain uncertainty.
• A consistent UX to separate “vault” accounts from “spending” or “experiment” wallets—useful when memecoin volatility spikes and you need discipline, not dopamine.

Why this moment is different

The 2021 bull run rode retail liquidity, stimulus, and speculative DeFi. The 2025 “capital frenzy” is more institutional: broker‑sold ETPs, tokenized cash equivalents, and real‑world assets settling 24/7. BlackRock’s BUIDL and JPMorgan’s tokenized funds aren’t meme fodder; they are cash‑flowing rails whose yield math works in a high‑rate world. That’s what policy clarity unlocks. (BlackRock announcements; WSJ and Business Insider coverage; RWA market sizing.) (prnewswire.com)

But clarity is not immunity. The Times’ reporting—executives knocking on Scaramucci’s door, tokenized‑equity startups courting Washington—shows how quickly incentives can bend when politics, markets, and code converge. For builders and investors, the strategy is simple: embrace the rails, respect the risk, and control your keys. (realclearmarkets.com)

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References and further reading

• The New York Times summary listing: “What Trump’s Embrace of Crypto Has Unleashed.” (realclearmarkets.com)
• Executive Order: “Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology.” (whitehouse.gov)
• Federal Register notice. (federalregister.gov)
• SEC on spot bitcoin ETP approvals. (sec.gov)
• SEC on crypto ETP in‑kind creations and options. (sec.gov)
• Congress.gov: GENIUS Act. (congress.gov)
• Reuters: “US crypto industry cheers 2025 wins, but party may fizzle next year.” (reuters.com)
• CNBC: Ether ETP listing approvals; memecoin risk and $TRUMP wallet outcomes. (cnbc.com)
• BlackRock BUIDL expansion and AUM milestones; CoinDesk RWA market size. (prnewswire.com)
• WSJ/Business Insider on JPMorgan’s tokenized money‑market fund.