Donald Trump has embraced cryptocurrency after once calling it a "scam", using his presidency to personally profit while dismantling regulatory oversight of the industry. Columnist Eduardo Porter argues this poses a serious risk to US financial stability, as Trump's administration has weakened enforcement and integrated volatile, uninsured crypto assets into the mainstream banking system that ordinary Americans rely on.

Trump reportedly earned $2.2bn in his first year back in office, with $1.2bn coming from crypto dealings, including his "World Liberty Financial" venture (49% sold to a UAE-linked firm for $500m) and his $Trump memecoin, which cost investors nearly $4bn while netting him over $600m. His administration curtailed SEC enforcement and DOJ prosecutions of crypto-related misconduct, while Congress passed the Genius Act, allowing banks and retailers to issue uninsured "stablecoins" now used mainly to trade riskier crypto assets like bitcoin.