New Ethics Bill Bans Congress, President, and Family from Trading or Profiting from Crypto

The Stop Trading, Retention, and Unfair Market Payoffs in Crypto Act of 2025, or the Stop TRUMP in Crypto Act, is a straightforward bill targeting government ethics. It draws a clear line in the sand: if you are a high-level federal official or their immediate family, you are essentially locked out of the digital asset game while that official is in office.

This isn't just about banning a few trades; it’s a comprehensive firewall. The bill strictly prohibits “covered individuals”—the President, Vice President, Members of Congress (Senators and Representatives), and their spouses, children, sons-in-law, and daughters-in-law—from several key activities related to digital assets (SEC. 4). This includes cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, NFTs, and even investment products tied to these assets. The goal is to eliminate potential conflicts of interest before they start, recognizing that government officials often have access to information that could move markets, especially in a volatile, emerging sector like crypto.

No More Insider Trading on the Blockchain

The core of the bill focuses on preventing officials from using their position for personal gain in the crypto space. First and foremost, a covered individual cannot trade digital assets if they possess material, non-public information about those assets while in office (SEC. 2). This is a direct application of traditional insider trading rules to the digital asset market.

Beyond trading, the bill bans officials from having any significant involvement in crypto companies. They cannot serve as an officer or director of any company that issues a digital asset. Furthermore, they are prohibited from earning money by issuing, sponsoring, promoting, or mining any digital asset within the U.S. or to any U.S. person. For example, if a Member of Congress wanted to launch their own NFT collection or get paid to promote a new DeFi protocol, this bill says absolutely not.

Closing the Trust Fund Loophole

Lawmakers have gotten smart about how people try to skirt ethics rules, often by placing assets into blind trusts or routing them through shell companies. This bill tackles that head-on (SEC. 3). It explicitly prohibits covered individuals from using any entity—like a trust, corporation, LLC, or even a political committee—to do what they are banned from doing directly.

If an official controls an entity or is the “beneficial owner” (meaning they stand to gain financially or influence the entity’s decisions), they can’t use that entity to bypass the crypto ban. The bill defines "beneficial owner" broadly, including anyone who owns 5% or more of the entity or has the power to influence its decisions. This means setting up a trust fund for your crypto holdings and claiming you don't control it won't fly if you're still the one benefiting from the gains.

What This Means for Everyday People

For the average person who just holds some Bitcoin or Ethereum, this bill doesn't change anything about your investments. Its impact is purely focused on government accountability. The benefit here is that it significantly raises the ethical bar for those making policy decisions that could affect the future of digital assets.

If you're worried about whether a Senator is voting on crypto regulation because it benefits their constituents or because it benefits their secret portfolio, this bill aims to remove that doubt. By forcing high-level officials to divest or forgo crypto-related business, it reduces the risk of self-dealing and ensures that policy decisions are based on public interest, not personal financial gain. Violations are treated seriously, invoking penalties already established for federal ethics and conflict-of-interest statutes (SEC. 2).

However, it’s worth noting the breadth of the bill. It applies these same strict restrictions to the immediate family members of covered individuals. While the intent is to prevent officials from using family members as proxies, it does place significant limitations on the private financial activities of spouses, children, and in-laws who are not public servants themselves. This is a common feature in ethics legislation, but it’s a high hurdle for those families to clear.