Senator Gillibrand Pushes Bill to Ban Officials From Issuing Memecoins
A new Senate proposal would prohibit elected officials and their spouses from creating or sponsoring personal digital assets.
Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand moved Wednesday to block elected officials from cashing in on cryptocurrency by introducing legislation that would ban members of Congress, the president, and their spouses from issuing or sponsoring their own digital assets — a direct shot at the growing memecoin trend sweeping Washington.
The proposed restriction targets a conflict-of-interest concern that has intensified since former President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump launched their own memecoins ahead of this year's inauguration, drawing sharp criticism from ethics watchdogs and rival lawmakers who argued the tokens gave the couple an avenue to profit from their political standing.
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Gillibrand's bill would close what critics describe as a glaring loophole in existing financial ethics rules, which were written long before blockchain-based assets became a mainstream vehicle for fundraising and self-promotion. By explicitly naming the president and congressional members alongside their spouses, the legislation casts a wider net than previous reform attempts that focused narrowly on stock trading by officials.
The proposal arrives as Congress wrestles with broader crypto regulation, including stablecoin legislation that Gillibrand herself has co-sponsored. Analysts note the memecoin ban could complicate bipartisan crypto negotiations, since any effort to tie ethics restrictions to market-structure bills risks stalling both tracks. Supporters, however, argue that establishing basic guardrails on official self-dealing is a prerequisite for any credible federal crypto framework.
Whether the bill advances through a divided Senate remains uncertain, but its introduction signals that the political backlash against politician-branded tokens is hardening into concrete legislative action. Continue reading at Cointelegraph.
