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Trump divestiture plan in crypto bill could defer taxes on his gains

Trump divestiture plan in crypto bill could defer taxes on his gains

Unpublished bipartisan ethics language tied to the crypto market-structure bill would force President Donald Trump to sell crypto businesses while deferring capital gains taxes, complicating efforts to ease Democratic conflict-of-interest concerns.

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Fact Check
The primary Bloomberg article directly confirms that draft ethics language tied to the Clarity Act would force Trump to divest crypto holdings and could allow him to defer federal capital gains taxes on those gains indefinitely under current law. BloomingBit and CoinNess, both citing Bloomberg, corroborate the divestiture requirement and the tax-deferral mechanism (reinvestment deferral, potentially permanent avoidance if held until death). All available sources are consistent with the claim; no conflicting evidence was found. The draft remains non-public and subject to ongoing negotiations, which slightly tempers certainty on final details.
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Summary

Unpublished bipartisan ethics language tied to the CLARITY Act would require President Donald Trump to divest crypto-related businesses while allowing him to defer capital gains taxes on those sales, a structure Bloomberg said could save him millions and could deepen debate over whether the measure meaningfully limits conflicts of interest. Earlier reporting on the Senate negotiations said the draft was assembled by Republican Sen. Thom Tillis and Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego, would give state attorneys general enforcement power, and still required Trump's agreement as talks continued. Trump's 2025 financial disclosure, released at the end of June, showed about $1.4 billion in income from crypto ventures last year, including roughly $635 million in royalties tied to Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin licensing and about $588 million from World Liberty Financial token sales.

Terms & Concepts
  • memecoin: A crypto token whose value and popularity are often driven by internet culture, branding, or speculation rather than a traditional business use case.
  • capital gains taxes: Taxes owed on the profit earned when an asset is sold for more than its purchase price.
  • divest: To sell or dispose of assets or business interests, often to address ethics or regulatory concerns.