Senator Adam Schiff has introduced the Curbing Officials’ Income and Nondisclosure (COIN) Act, a bill designed to prohibit the U.S. President, Vice President, senior Executive Branch officials, Members of Congress, and their immediate families from engaging in cryptocurrency-related activities that could lead to personal profit or conflicts of interest.
This legislation aims to prevent these officials from launching, promoting, or profiting from digital assets such as memecoins, stablecoins, and NFTs while in office.
The COIN Act was proposed in direct response to former President Donald Trump’s extensive involvement in the crypto space. Trump has launched his meme coin, TRUMP, and a decentralized finance (DeFi) project called World Liberty Financial, reportedly earning over $57 million from the latter. Additionally, Trump Media & Technology Group has secured roughly $2.5 billion to establish a Bitcoin treasury. These ventures have sparked concerns about the use of presidential power for personal financial gain.
Senator Schiff criticized these activities, stating that Trump’s cryptocurrency dealings raise serious ethical, legal, and constitutional questions. He emphasized the need for stronger scrutiny of public officials’ financial dealings to prevent exploitation of digital assets for personal enrichment. The bill includes potential penalties such as fines and jail time for violations.
This move follows the recent passage of the GENIUS Act by the Senate, which regulates stablecoins but notably exempts the President and Vice President from certain restrictions. The COIN Act seeks to fill this gap by explicitly targeting these top officials and their families, aiming to enhance transparency and accountability in government dealings with cryptocurrencies.
While the GENIUS Act aims to provide regulatory clarity and consumer protections for stablecoins but has faced criticism from Democrats for not addressing conflicts of interest related to Trump’s crypto investments, the COIN Act seeks to prohibit U.S. officials, including the President, from profiting from cryptocurrency ventures while in office, aiming to tackle concerns about corruption and conflicts of interest as cryptocurrencies become more influential in the U.S. financial system.
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