Trump Eyes Moving U.S. Economy Further Into Crypto Via Mortgages, 401(k)s

With crypto policy now representing one of President Donald Trump's most concrete achievements in his second term, the White House is reportedly gearing up toward further moves to affix digital assets into a more prominent role in the U.S. economy.

Trump is widely expected to soon issue an executive order that calls for American's retirement plans — the 401(k)s that represent a vast segment of U.S. investing — to open further to less traditional assets, which reportedly may include cryptocurrencies. If that comes to pass, it could ease a major portion of the investing public into digital assets, though it remains a market that still lacks formal U.S. rules.

His administration's report on crypto demanded under Trump's January order on digital assets policy is also set to emerge on Wednesday, and it's expected by crypto insiders to be lengthy and wide-ranging. The industry will be looking closely for updates on the federal formation of crypto reserves — including the so-called Bitcoin Strategic Reserve — and information on other initiatives, potentially including crypto tax matters.

Trump's director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, William Pulte, also recently ordered government-backed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to make plans to include a borrower's crypto holdings among assets that can back up their mortgage. That move has now drawn opposition from Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, who have steadily opposed Trump's crypto maneuvers.

“Expanding underwriting criteria to include the consideration of unconverted cryptocurrency assets could pose risks to the stability of the housing market and the financial system,” according to a letter to Pulte from several Democratic senators alongside Warren — the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee. The letter cited crypto's high volatility as a danger in the underwriting of mortgages.

If crypto found entry into everyday retirement savings, mortgage lending and became a significant reserve in federal fiscal policy, the shifts could dramatically expand usage and appetite for crypto in the U.S., which the president has vowed will become the world capital for digital assets.

Opposition Democrats had suffered a crushing setback in this month's congressional actions that saw a major segment of their party support crypto initiatives. However, the larger test is still coming, when the Senate tries to move forward on its bill to establish rules for U.S. crypto markets.

Now that the stablecoin oversight has been established with the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act with which Trump marked a first big win during this month's Crypto Week, the Senate needs to get sufficient support for its legislative effort on market structure, seen in partial draft form last week. Though the House of Representatives approved a similar bill known as the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, the Senate is working on its own legislation that will need to again clear more than 60 yes votes, which means a repeat of GENIUS' hefty support from Democrats.

The industry is facing a deadline next week of Aug. 5 to give the lawmakers some feedback on the discussion draft, though that date is beyond the Senate's August recess in which lawmakers will generally be away from Washington for their summer break. House lawmakers already began their recess.

In the absence of Congress, Washington tends to wind down to a slower pace, but crypto is expected to continue its position near the top of the federal agenda through the rest of 2025.

Read More: Trump Signs GENIUS Act Into Law, Elevating First Major Crypto Effort to Become Policy