White House Pushes for New Crypto Laws, Calls on SEC to Act Swiftly

A new report from a cryptocurrency task force formed by President Donald Trump outlines the administration’s position on digital asset regulation and calls for both legislative action and updated guidance from U.S. financial regulators.

In a fact sheet released ahead of the report, the White House urged lawmakers to speed up the development of a federal crypto regulatory framework. The administration also emphasized the need for additional provisions, such as allowing crypto platforms to hold customer assets and implementing a tailored disclosure system for issuers of crypto-related securities.

Trump established the working group soon after taking office in January, fulfilling a campaign promise to revamp U.S. crypto oversight. The group’s recommendations include tax reforms and capital markets policy changes aimed at fostering innovation in the digital finance space.

SEC and CFTC Urged to Move Quickly

The report encourages the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to immediately leverage their existing authority to enable regulated digital asset trading across the country.

Officials such as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, SEC Chair Paul Atkins, and Budget Director Russell Vought are among the key contributors to the task force, led by Trump aide Bo Hines.

Legislative Landscape

This report arrives just weeks after the House of Representatives passed the Clarity Act, a bill aimed at establishing comprehensive crypto rules. A similar measure is now under consideration in the Senate.

President Trump has already signed a stablecoin regulation bill into law earlier this month—seen as a landmark moment for the digital asset industry. The White House now wants Congress to follow up by passing broader market structure legislation, including additional measures highlighted in the report.

Among these suggestions:

• Granting the CFTC authority over crypto spot markets
• Recognizing the potential of decentralized finance (DeFi) systems
• Implementing regulatory sandboxes and safe harbor provisions to support innovation
• Encouraging tokenization of traditional assets like stocks, real estate, and bank deposits

Industry and Political Context

Crypto companies such as Coinbase have been exploring tokenized securities and are awaiting regulatory approval to offer blockchain-based equities. So far, the SEC has not responded to these proposals publicly.

Trump’s approach marks a stark contrast to that of the previous administration. Under President Biden, regulators aggressively pursued enforcement against major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, citing violations of securities laws. Many of those cases have now been dropped under the Trump administration.

Despite growing support from the crypto industry, Trump’s backing has also sparked ethics concerns. His family has launched meme coins and he reportedly holds a financial interest in a platform called World Liberty Financial. However, the White House has denied any conflicts of interest.