CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos reports from Las Vegas, where senior members of the White House are backing crypto as a pillar of U.S. economic strategy — as Trump Media unveils a $2.5 billion bitcoin treasury and officials push stablecoins to extend dollar dominance.

Las Vegas

Trump Media has unveiled a $2.5 billion bitcoin treasury at a major crypto event in Las Vegas, where senior White House officials and members of Congress are promoting digital assets as central to the U.S. economic strategy. The event has drawn notable figures, including Don and Eric Trump, and has highlighted the growing role of stablecoins and the push for regulatory clarity.

The announcement comes amid questions about the ethics of Trump-related crypto holdings, with some tokens reportedly directing significant profits to Trump businesses. Despite these concerns, optimism remains high among attendees, with industry leaders calling for clearer regulations and emphasizing the potential of stablecoins to support new financial services.

Trump Media unveils a $2.5 billion crypto treasury

Welcome back to Fast Money. Bitcoin less than 2% from record highs rising again today. The crypto up about 16% in May alone. The rally coming as Bitcoin 2025 kicks off in Las Vegas. CNBC's Mackenzie Sagalos has the highlights from the Vegas Strip. Mackenzie. Hey, Mel. The biggest names for the administration and Congress are in Las Vegas this week for Bitcoin's flagship event as the coin surges back toward its all-time high. Don and Eric Trump, crypto czar David Sachs and Vice President J.D. Vance are all here touting digital assets as strategic for the U.S. economy. ETF inflows have pushed Bitcoin's market cap near $2.2 trillion as U.S. debt fears after a Moody's downgrade and a White House push to legitimize privately issued digital dollars drive momentum. Now, Bo Hines, who chairs the White House Digital Assets Council, told me that stable coins are central to that strategy, noting that Tether was among the top 10 buyers of U.S. treasuries last year. Regulators like the OCC and Fed have also rolled back restrictions on banks touching blockchain. But ethics questions are growing over Trump's own crypto holdings, including four tokens that funnel up to 80 percent of profits to his businesses and a $2.5 billion Bitcoin treasury unveiled by Trump media earlier today. And while Bitcoin grabs headlines here in Vegas, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev says the real action is on chain with stable coins poised to power 24-7 equities trading. Mackenzie, in terms of the ethics concerns, are they surfacing there at the conference or is it just all, all, you know, all guns blazing for crypto because the Trumps are there and you might as well invest alongside the president and his family? It's exactly that. There's so much optimism and exuberance that even if there are these questionable dealings where you have profit structures that obviously are benefiting the family, it's a rising tide lifts all ships. So USD one, which is that U.S. dollar peg stable coin issued by World Liberty Financial, where 75 percent of profits from that project go to Trump related entities. That is a stable coin that benefits from the Genius Act. And a lot of players in this ecosystem tether among them would like to see formal hard and fast rules passed by Congress. And that's why you're seeing optimism. Even if, you know, we're talking about USD one in one situation, another one of those Trump tokens is the meme coin, which has also sparked a lot of controversy. One hundred and forty eight million dollars spent by contest winners last week to attend a dinner with the president. More than all but six of the top 25 holders who had a private reception with the president were connected to foreign exchanges. And so there is that question around foreign capital potentially buying access to the head of the U.S. Mackenzie, thank you.

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