It has been approximated that up to 20% of Americans had invested in cryptocurrencies by August 2021. Although the exact percentage can fluctuate between surveys, the evidence suggests that cryptocurrencies are no longer a specialized interest of technology enthusiasts or merely a finance speculation tool. Instead, digital assets have transformed into a commonly used investment option that could soon become mainstream.
Despite the optimism, there is still a notable disparity between the level of mass adoption of cryptocurrency and its political representation, particularly among senior US politicians who are falling behind. This narrows the group of congresspeople who are also hodlers, which makes them intriguing. The question arises whether a lawmaker who owns or has some exposure to crypto also advocates for the digital asset industry.
The crowdsourced data project called “Bitcoin Politicians” tracks the crypto holdings of U.S. political figures using public financial disclosures. As per the project, there are seven known crypto investors in Congress, comprising both chambers. Let’s examine how their personal financial strategies affect their public political positions or if they are reflected at all.
Michael McCaul
Aged 59, Michael McCaul is a Republican representative from Texas who serves as the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. He ranked as the fifth wealthiest Congress member in 2018. McCaul is recognized for his hardline foreign policy stances, including his outspoken disapproval of the U.S. exit from the Yemeni Civil War and his support for President Joe Biden’s airstrikes on Iranian-linked targets in Syria.
A bipartisan bill was co-sponsored by McCaul in 2016, which suggested the establishment of a commission to research the argument regarding the utilization of encryption and its economic consequences. In recent times, there is no evidence of any public declarations by the Texas representative concerning cryptography.
Barry Moore
Barry Moore, a firm Republican from Alabama, is a newly elected member of the House of Representatives. In January 2021, he contested the validation of the presidential election outcomes and faced a temporary suspension of his Twitter account for supporting the allegations of an “election theft.”
Moore’s investment in Dogecoin (DOGE) in June 2021, worth between $1,000 and $15,000, has experienced a decline of nearly 50%, as revealed in a public disclosure. Additionally, the legislator invested up to $15,000 in Ether (ETH) and up to $45,000 in Cardano’s ADA. Despite these investments, Moore hasn’t shared his views regarding cryptocurrencies publicly.
Marie Newman
Marie Newman, age 57, is a recent addition to the House of Representatives. Hailing from Illinois, she is a Democrat who is closely associated with the progressive faction of the party. Newman champions causes such as reproductive freedom, firearms regulation, an hourly wage of $15, and the Green New Deal.
As of December 2021, Newman has invested in Coinbase shares with an amount ranging from $30,000 to $100,000. Additionally, she has disclosed her acquisition of over $15,000 worth of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust shares. Despite her ownership of these crypto-related assets, Newman has not publicly expressed her views on them. However, as a member of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus – a nonpartisan organization that advocates for a more lenient approach to regulating cryptocurrencies – she strives to promote the growth and development of this technology.
Jefferson Van Drew
Van Drew, a retired dentist who spent nearly 30 years in the New Jersey legislature, was elected to Congress in 2018 as a Democrat. However, in 2020, he switched sides and became a Republican. This move was not unexpected since he was one of only two Democratic members who voted against initiating an impeachment inquiry into former President Donald Trump in December 2019. While Van Drew aligned with Democrats 89.7% of the time during his tenure with the party, his decision to change parties indicates that he has departed from much of the party’s ideology.
In a 2020 disclosure, Van Drew accounted for up to $250,000 in an investment trust operated by Grayscale, one of the larger digital-asset management firms on the market. At the time, the representative’s office declined to give the press any details about the exact nature of the investment, and Van Drew himself has remained silent with regard to digital asset-related policy issues.
Michael Waltz
Michael Waltz, a retired Army colonel and former Pentagon adviser, is the most recent House electee and the first Green Beret to serve in Congress. As a Florida Republican, Waltz maintains a warrior ethos and advocates for a full U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics due to Chinese Communist Party’s treatment of the Uyghur population. Furthermore, Waltz opposed President Biden’s economic stimulus bill worth $1.9 trillion and the proposal to establish a commission to investigate the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Based on disclosures, it has been revealed that Waltz invested as much as $100,000 in Bitcoin (BTC) in June 2021, making him one of the limited number of politicians who publicly hold the original cryptocurrency. Despite this, he prefers to discuss foreign policy matters on social media and when questioned about his crypto investment, he likened Bitcoin to gold as a means of guarding against inflation. Additionally, Waltz is part of the Congressional Blockchain Caucus.
Cynthia Lummis
Cynthia Lummis, a Republican senator from Wyoming, is better known for her support of cryptocurrency than her experience as a digital asset investor. As a staunch conservative, she was previously the sole woman in the Freedom Caucus.
Senator Lummis, who is a part of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, reported in her January 2021 disclosure that she bought Bitcoin worth anywhere between $50,000 to $100,000. In addition, she disclosed that her total Bitcoin holdings came up to approximately 5 BTC.
Lummis demonstrates her commitment through action by vocalizing her thoughts. One of her well-known comments included a comparison between the U.S. and Venezuela’s inflation. Additionally, she expressed a desire to form a financial innovation caucus that would educate the U.S. Senate and their staff about Bitcoin’s benefits and how it can complement the U.S. dollar.
Lummis announced during the holiday season in 2021 that she is in the process of drafting a thorough bill, which she intends to present in 2022. She urged voters to reach out to their senators to endorse the legislation in a tweet, while also expressing her desire for bipartisan co-sponsors.
Pat Toomey
Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania can be called the arch enemy of government spending (with a peculiar exception for charter school funding), having once proposed a budget plan with a $2.2 trillion tax cut. He also happens to be a strong supporter of banking deregulation.
Over the past year, Toomey has become a prominent proponent of cryptocurrency in Washington, publicly opposing Senator Sherrod Brown’s proposal to assign crypto regulation to executive agencies and urging Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to specify the language in the infrastructure bill regarding tax reporting obligations for crypto. Prior to a congressional hearing on stablecoins in December 2021, Toomey unveiled his own regulatory guidelines. Toomey invested in Grayscale’s Bitcoin and Ethereum trusts, purchasing shares worth between $2,000 and $30,000 in June 2021.
BONUS: Best Crypto IRAs
For those seeking to increase their cryptocurrency wealth, a crypto IRA may present a viable option. Investing in a cryptocurrency IRA can help to circumvent capital gains tax, as long as the investments are held within the IRA account. While cryptocurrency investments are known for being volatile, they have proven to outperform nearly every other investment category over the past ten years. Interestingly, they have been observed to follow distinct bullish and bearish market cycles, with significant declines following significant surges. However, irrespective of this volatility, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum have consistently rebounded and reached new record highs after each market crash. If you envision a decentralized future and seek long-term investments, it may be worth exploring investment retirement accounts that enable access to cryptocurrencies without triggering capital gains taxes.
Best Crypto IRAs
After familiarizing yourself with the basic regulations and restrictions surrounding cryptocurrency IRAs, it’s time to examine the cream of the crop. Multiple choices are available for your comparison, with these platforms usually carrying more elevated fees than conventional crypto exchanges. However, the tax advantages justify this sacrifice.
1. iTrustCapital: The Best Crypto IRA for Beginner Cryptocurrency Investors
iTrustCapital is a prominent trading platform for digital asset IRA that provides you the facility to purchase and exchange cryptocurrencies and tangible gold in real-time utilizing your retirement accounts.
Their pricing is fully transparent, with a trade fee of 1% for crypto and a $50 premium above spot for gold. Additionally, they offer the following services:
- IRA setup at iTrust Custodial Services
- Facilitation of any transfers to your IRA
- IRS and tax reports by iTrust Custodial Services
- Unlimited storage with institutional custody partners
- Platform support and maintenance
2. Bitcoin IRA
With Bitcoin IRA, you can fully invest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Ethereum Classic through your IRA. This is a greater range of options than what one may find with other competing companies. The company strives to simplify and establish safety in the otherwise complicated process of investing in cryptocurrencies.
BitGo Trust ensures the protection of your digital assets for up to $100 million, utilizing the technology of BitGo Inc. The company is renowned as the largest processor of bitcoin transactions on the blockchain, handling 20% of all worldwide transactions and storing over $2 billion worth of assets in its wallet.
It only takes a few minutes to open an account with Bitcoin IRA, whether you require assistance with a rollover, traditional IRA, or Roth IRA.
3. Broad Financial: The Best Crypto IRA for a Variety of Alternate Assets
With Broad Financial, you have the freedom to direct your IRA in a way that suits you. This crypto IRA trust takes a flat fee approach, with no fees based on assets or transactions. You have a wide variety of tokens to invest in and can utilize any exchange of your choice to conduct trades.
The fee arrangement includes:
- $1195 one-time setup fee
- $100 one-time custodian setup fee
- $380 annual maintenance fee (payable in $95 quarterly installments)
- Free lifetime customer support
- Tax-advantaged accounts
Broad Financial has a noteworthy edge over its competition in that it allows you to retain control over your private keys. Keeping hold of your private keys grants you distinct advantages that are unique to Broad Financial.
- Choosing the storage format you prefer
- Using an existing wallet
- Customizing your security for your own peace of mind
4. My Digital Money
My Equity Trust collaborates with My Digital Money, a crypto trading platform based in the United States, to offer self-directed crypto IRA products. For a setup fee of $50, you can use your IRA funds to make investments and receive tax-free or tax-advantaged profits that enhance your retirement portfolio.
You have the option to open various types of IRA accounts, such as:
- Simple IRA
- Traditional IRA
- Roth IRA
- Simplified Employee Pension Plan (SEP) IRA
By establishing a cash account, you can commence trading. Afterward, the MDM platform permits you to engage in trading activities that are unconnected to the existing markets, which can decrease risks and assist you in procuring stocks at the most favorable prices feasible. Additionally, limit orders can be employed to purchase or sell shares at designated rates or following specified price changes.
If you wish to do so, you may trade cryptocurrency independently of your IRA on the same platform – with complete control over your IRA funds.
5. BitIRA
Unlike most crypto IRA companies that do not assume any responsibility for the safety of your cryptocurrency, BitIRA offers complete insurance coverage for your account, reversing the norm.
You will receive genuine cold storage for your cryptocurrency, which is securely stored on a hard drive in a vault that is continuously monitored by physical guards. Additionally, you will benefit from excellent customer service that will put you at ease, even if you are new to cryptocurrency investment.
BitIRA’s cryptocurrency offerings encompass a diverse range, comprising Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Ethereum Classic, Ethereum, and Ripple.
Leave a Reply