Crypto-critic Elizabeth Warren requests immediate public disclosures from David Sacks ahead of Trump's summit

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D.-Mass.), a staunch critic of the industry who previously pledged to build an "anti-crypto army," wrote a letter to President Trump's crypto czar David Sacks asking him to make public any financial disclosures he has filed with the government amid conflict of interest concerns.

Writing on Thursday following President Trump's executive order to establish a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and ahead of today's ahead of inaugural Crypto Summit at the White House, chaired by Sacks, Warren requested information on how the crypto czar has addressed potential conflicts of interest and how he will "prevent the President and other private individuals from directly profiting off of the Trump Administration’s efforts to selectively pump the value of certain crypto assets, drop crypto asset-related enforcement actions and deregulate the crypto asset industry." 

On Monday, Sacks confirmed that he had sold off his cryptocurrency holdings, including BTC, ETH and SOL, before President Trump took office after concerns first emerged online over potential conflicts of interest. The crypto czar is currently undergoing an official ethics review.

Sacks also refuted claims he still had indirect crypto holdings from investing in Bitwise's Crypto Index Fund (BITW). "This is a lie. I had a $74k position in the Bitwise [fund], which I sold on Jan. 22. I do not have 'large indirect holdings,'" Sacks said . "I’ll provide an update at the end of the ethics process."

Furthermore, Sacks later confirmed he sold his stake in crypto investment firm Multicoin Capital. "I didn’t even have to at that point in time because the ethics process was still underway. But I took it upon myself to sell all my cryptocurrency and my crypto-focused funds. I suggest you wait for all the facts before making baseless and hysterical smears," he said on Tuesday.

Sacks founded Craft Ventures, which also sold its position in the same Bitwise fund in January, according to its website .

More specifically, Warren requested details on whether Sacks has filed financial disclosures with the Office of Government Ethics and the exact dates that he and Craft Ventures divested from their crypto-related investments. 

She also asked who had prior knowledge of President Trump's Truth Social post on Sunday, directing his Presidential Working Group on Crypto to "move forward" on the creation of a U.S. Crypto Strategic Reserve including BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL and ADA, how many are federal employees, did any of those individuals purchase the assets in the weeks prior to the announcement and why those plans had changed between Sunday and Thursday.

Additionally, Warren asked what specific plans are in place at the White House to ensure that individuals developing cryptocurrency policy are in compliance with all federal conflict of interest rules.

The Senator also criticized the Securities and Exchange Commission for dropping its legal cases against major crypto firms, including Coinbase, Robinhood and Kraken, and separately raised concerns over the agency declaring that most memecoins are not securities, a move that could benefit speculative assets, including Trump's official token, she said.

"These actions have the potential to benefit billionaire investors, Trump Administration insiders, and speculators at the expense of middle-class families," Warren alleged.

Axios first reported the news.

US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile

Late Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order to establish a  U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. The bitcoin reserve would be established from the approximate 200,000 BTC ($18 billion) already owned by the federal government that was forfeited as part of criminal or civil proceedings. However, Trump also directed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to develop budget-neutral strategies for acquiring additional bitcoin, provided that those strategies have no incremental costs to American taxpayers.

The executive order also establishes a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile consisting of cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin forfeited in criminal or civil proceedings. Despite Trump's Sunday announcement, the government will not acquire additional assets for the stockpile beyond those obtained through forfeiture proceedings. The words "reserve" and "stockpile" have been used interchangeably in recent months sparking some confusion .

The Block attempted to reach David Sacks for comment via the White House.