As US President Donald Trump’s tariffs create an unpredictable trade environment, some members of his administration have been investing in sectors influenced by his policies, including Bitcoin (BTC).
On Tuesday, the Trump administration announced it would extend the tariff delay on China. At the same time, the United States Commerce Department will introduce aluminum tariffs on over 400 different products, including wind turbines, mobile cranes, railcars, motorcycles and construction equipment.
The unpredictability of Trump’s trade tariffs has raised concerns among national trade groups like the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), which said they are “delaying growth, disrupting operations, and raising legal concerns among companies.”
Amid this uncertainty, officials connected with the Trump administration have deepened their ties with crypto and businesses affected by his trade policies.
Lutnick’s firm buys Bitcoin amid tariffs
Recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as reported by Sludge, show that US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, via his family-controlled firm, Cantor Fitzgerald, has been actively investing or divesting in sectors affected by Trump’s economic policies.
While US law does include certain provisions to protect against conflicts of interest, Lutnick received a waiver on July 8, which allows him to participate “in particular matters … that may have a direct and predictable effect on Cantor Fitzgerald.”
According to an Aug. 14 filing with the SEC and subsequent analysis from Quiver Quantitative, Cantor Fitzgerald invested in a Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FTBC) as well as stock in companies like chip producer AMD, Tesla, Alibaba and Robinhood.
Cantor’s investments in FTBC and trading platform Robinhood numbered $120.7 million and $116.8 million, respectively. This came after Bo Hines, executive director of the Presidential Council of Advisers on Digital Assets, suggested after a White House interview in April that the government could use tariffs to fund purchases for the newly created Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
Related: US should fund Bitcoin strategic reserve with tariff surplus: Author
Meanwhile, Cantor’s other investments have been deemed by analysts as either resistant to tariff policies, in the case of Chinese e-commerce site Alibaba or directly benefitting from tariffs, in the case of Tesla.
Bartlett Naylor, financial policy advocate at the watchdog Public Citizen, told Sludge, “When the Oxford English Dictionary next updates its conflict-of-interest definition, it’ll use Cantor Fitzgerald’s crypto ventures and the Lutnick connection as prime example.”
Other members of Trump’s inner circle have shown reported instances of conflict of interest. David Sacks, the administration’s crypto and AI Czar, sold some $200 million in crypto investments at the beginning of Trump’s second term to avoid such claims.
However, following the divestment, Sacks also received a similar waiver to Lutnick, claiming that “the financial interests covered by this waiver are not so substantial as to be deemed likely to affect the integrity of your services to the Government.”
On July 11, US-based AI firm Vultron announced that it received $22 million in Sacks’ venture capital firm, Craft Ventures. The firm, which is pursuing federal contracts, even noted Sacks in its announcement, stating:
“Craft Ventures, co-founded by White House AI adviser David Sacks, backed the round, signaling investor confidence that Vultrons [sic] is the category-defining system for AI-driven federal growth. This funding will accelerate Vultron’s mission to transform enterprise federal growth and elevate the workforce.”
The investment from Sacks’ firm comes as AI firms are expanding investments in data centers and racing for predominance. AI development has been cast as a top priority for the Trump administration. The White House released its AI action plan on July 10, which included investing in production capacity for AI hardware. Trump has also negotiated hardline deals with individual tech companies that produce semiconductors for AI.
Uncertainty as Trump delays another 90 days
On Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the status quo of 90-day delays with China was “working pretty well.”
In an interview with CNBC, he said that the tariffs were projected to bring in $300 billion in revenue but that he’d “have to revise that up substantially. … We’re going to bring down the deficit to GDP. We’ll start paying down the debt, and then at that point that can be used as an offset to the American people.”
Trade groups are less optimistic about the effects the tariffs are having on the American economy. The NFTC said that “economists and industry experts warn of broad potential impacts on supply chains.”
The trade group said that the tariffs are creating uncertainty and increasing the cost of raw materials across supply chains.
Related: Tariffs, explained: How they work and why they matter
“In sectors like advanced manufacturing, the stakes are particularly high. Four in five companies said tariffs threaten their ability to innovate in areas critical to competitiveness, from fuel efficiency to safety and sustainability,” it said.
The tariffs don’t just affect big business but everyday consumers as well. The Budget Lab at Yale University said in an Aug. 7 report that “the price level from all 2025 tariffs rises by 1.8% in the short-run, the equivalent of an average per household income loss of $2,400 in 2025.”
Tariffs on imported food have led to jumps in domestic produce. In July, wholesale prices for domestic fresh and dry vegetables were 38.9% higher than the year before.
Tariffs have yet to critically impact construction materials, but Home Depot, a large home improvement and construction materials chain, said homeowners were delaying large projects, as prices increased due to tariffs. The company said it is trying to offset the effect tariffs will have on prices by diversifying its supply chain.
The US and world economy are still waiting to feel the full impact of Trump’s unpredictable trade policy. While this has led to uncertainty and some increased costs for investors, it’s clear that some members of his administration are prepared to use that to their own gain.
Magazine: Bitcoin’s long-term security budget problem: Impending crisis or FUD?