David Sacks, appointed by the Trump administration as the AI and crypto czar, has sold more than $200 million in digital asset investments, both personally and through his firm, Craft Ventures, prior to starting his new role. A memo from the White House revealed that at least $85 million of these sales are directly linked to Sacks.
The disclosure, dated March 5, spans 11 pages, contrasting sharply with a two-page document from Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the new Secretary of Health and Human Services. Sacks’ divestments highlight a significant departure from the previous Trump administration, where conflicts of interest were often overlooked.
President Trump, meanwhile, continues to hold substantial assets, including a stake in Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social, and has initiated multiple cryptocurrency projects that could be influenced by governmental policies. Elon Musk, a key advisor and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is also positioned to shape regulations that might benefit his ventures.
Days before his inauguration, Trump launched a memetoken called $TRUMP, retaining 80% of its supply. The Trump family is also set to receive 75% of the proceeds from World Liberty Financial, a crypto bank established last year.
While Sacks has exited many digital asset positions to avoid conflicts of interest, reports indicate that several cabinet members, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, also have significant cryptocurrency investments.
On a recent episode of the All-In podcast, Sacks explained his decision to divest, stating, “I didn’t want to even have the appearance of a conflict.” This came after criticism from public figures, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, who raised concerns about potential conflicts ahead of the White House Crypto Summit.
In response to these issues, Trump signed an executive order on March 6 to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, funded solely through tokens seized in legal forfeitures. The order also sets up a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile managed by the Treasury Department for confiscated cryptocurrencies.
Sacks’ ethics disclosure indicates that he has liquidated all his liquid cryptocurrency holdings, including bitcoin, ether, and solana, as well as his investments in the Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund, Coinbase, and Robinhood. While he still retains a few digital asset-related investments, they represent less than 0.1% of his total investment assets, with their sale expected to occur shortly.
Shogun Lin
