Original article | Odaily Odaily( @OdailyChina )
Author｜Golem ( @web3_golem )
"Crypto Tsar" David Sacks is leaving. Sacks explained that he is stepping down because he has reached the 130-day limit for special government employee terms. He will continue to participate in government affairs as co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
On December 6, 2024, Trump announced the appointment of David Sacks as White House Director of Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency Affairs. Because Trump directly referred to him as the "White House AI & Crypto Czar," David Sacks earned the title of "Crypto Czar." This is not an official title, but rather a role that facilitates the formalization of David Sacks' influence . In his letter of appointment, Trump specifically expressed his expectations for David Sacks in the crypto field, stating that he would "drive the establishment of a clear legal framework to provide the long-needed clarity for the cryptocurrency industry, enabling it to thrive in the United States."
From a motivational standpoint, in 2024, Trump made numerous crypto promises to gain the support of the American crypto community. Therefore, after successfully taking office, he needed a capable person to help him fulfill these promises, and David Sacks was the policy implementer chosen by Trump.
David Sacks certainly lived up to Trump's expectations, achieving some accomplishments during his 130-day term: banning CBDCs, holding the first White House Crypto Summit, establishing the U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, and facilitating the passage of the CLARITY Act.
David Sacks largely delivered on several of the promises Trump made to the crypto industry during his campaign, leading many to portray his term as a victory narrative. On the surface, this seems true, but a closer look at Sacks' contributions to the crypto industry reveals a common thread: his political pronouncements were substantial, but the actual gains for the industry were meager .
In those 130 days, David Sacks wasn't reshaping the crypto industry; he was simply putting on a crypto political show for Trump.
1. The White House Encrypted Summit = Trump's Praise Meeting
The most memorable moment of this performance was undoubtedly the White House crypto summit, which appeared outwardly sincere but was actually nothing more than a sycophantic and slogan-mongering affair. (Related reading: White House Crypto Summit: A Political Performance of Sycophancy and Slogans )
On March 7, 2025, David Sacks, on behalf of Trump, invited a host of crypto companies and industry figures to the White House, including Chris Dixon, partner of a16z, the CEO of Ripple, the CEO of Robinhood, Michael Saylor, founder of Strategy, the CEO of Coinbase, and a number of US government officials, including Trump and the Secretary of the Treasury.
Crypto figures visiting Washington isn't unprecedented, but previously it mostly involved hearings, being criticized, and explaining whether they were involved in fraud. This time was different; the setting shifted from the hearing room to the White House, and the atmosphere changed from tense confrontation to a respectable photo opportunity. For the first time, crypto figures were treated as honored guests by the US government. David Sacks sat next to Trump, like a mastermind orchestrating the proceedings.
At the White House crypto summit, David Sacks sat to Trump's left.
What was discussed at this high-level and highly anticipated encrypted government meeting?
According to Odaily 'Odaily that evening, everyone was fawning over Trump throughout the closed-door meeting, which was touted as defining the direction of crypto regulation for the next four years. No substantive policy documents were released. Because the meeting's content differed so drastically from market expectations, the crypto market immediately fell after the summit, according to OKX data.
This summit certainly had symbolic significance, but the problem is that it was only symbolic. It was another performance of Trump siding with crypto, but the things the industry wanted most—unified, stable, and predictable regulatory boundaries; long-term rules that would allow institutions to enter with confidence; and projects not having to guess the SEC and CFTC's next stance every day—remained elusive. The meeting was lively, the emotions running high, but ultimately, what affected the industry was the news.
The reason this meeting felt so superficial is because it wasn't part of the original plan. Trump's campaign promise was to establish a cryptocurrency commission, intended to allow crypto industry leaders to engage directly and continuously with the White House and the president, but this failed to materialize for various reasons. Therefore, a crypto summit was hastily arranged as compensation, with promises of continued hosting. However, the White House has not held a second crypto conference of similar caliber since.
II. Bitcoin Strategic Reserves = Storing Bitcoin in a Different Drawer
The second major thing David Sacks pushed for, the U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, was, seriously, not a performance, but a magic trick.
Hours before the White House crypto summit, Trump signed an executive order establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve, but the price of Bitcoin fell after the announcement. The core reason, as David Sacks explained, was that the strategic Bitcoin reserve came from Bitcoin seized by the U.S. government in previous criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings, rather than newly purchased Bitcoin, and therefore did not cost taxpayers a single penny.
While the Treasury and Commerce Departments were authorized in the order to study a new "budget-neutral" Bitcoin purchase strategy, no specific timetable or scale for purchases was given. Therefore, this Bitcoin strategic reserve is essentially telling the market: I will neither sell nor buy more Bitcoin.
Trump signs executive order for Bitcoin strategic reserve
Was David Sacks's move brilliant? For Trump, it was brilliant—he fulfilled his promise without spending a penny. But for the crypto industry, it was merely symbolic. The market had expected the US government to step in and increase its Bitcoin holdings, injecting liquidity and providing endorsement. Instead, it simply "moved the seized Bitcoins into a different drawer."
Third, the Genius Act is the real achievement.
The GENIUS Act may be David Sacks's true achievement as the crypto czar.
On July 18, 2025, Trump officially signed the GENIUS Act into law in the East Room of the White House, making it a formally enacted law. This act has both symbolic and practical significance. From an industry perspective, the GENIUS Act establishes a federal framework for dollar-denominated stablecoins, signifying that stablecoins have moved beyond their period of unregulated growth and entered a compliant phase, becoming new financial instruments backed by federal law.
David Sacks didn't accomplish this alone, but he certainly deserves credit. However, another bill, the CLARITY Act, the twin of the GENIUS Act, is still stalled. The CLARITY Act and the GENIUS Act were passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on July 18, 2025, but they have yet to complete the Senate process and remain in a stalemate in negotiations between the banking and crypto industries.
Trump signs GENIUS bill
David Sacks had confidently predicted that the Clarity Act and the Genius Act would be passed within the first 100 days of this administration's term. Now, it seems he has been thoroughly proven wrong.
David Sacks wasn't solely responsible for the failure of the Clarity Act, but he certainly bears some responsibility, just as he was able to claim credit for the passage of the Genius Act. The White House Digital Assets Task Force, led by David Sacks, explicitly referred to the Clarity Act as an "excellent foundation." Since the White House considered it a core draft of market structure legislation, could David Sacks remain a completely uninvolved bystander when it subsequently stalled?
The core deadlock in the bill centers on the conflict between the banking and crypto industries regarding stablecoin interest rates. According to the latest revised text, banks have won. Following this news, Circle's (CRCL) stock price fell by as much as 18% on March 25th, and Coinbase's (COIN) stock price fell by approximately 8%. Furthermore, if such a "CLARITY Act" were to pass, it would be a blow to the entire DeFi industry. (Related reading: The CLARITY Act Rewrites the DeFi Life-or-Death Book: Circle Reaps the Benefits, DeFi Tokens Bleed )
This is quite different from the script that Trump and David Sacks originally touted as beneficial to the crypto industry. It's ironic that a bill ostensibly aimed at promoting the development of the crypto industry has ultimately benefited banks, not the crypto industry itself.
On March 4th, despite his busy schedule, Trump still made time to mention the crypto industry, posting on Truth Social that the US must pass the Clarity Act as soon as possible, and that Americans should be able to get higher returns on their funds. It seemed Trump still cared about the crypto industry, but it wasn't until the latest revised text of the bill was released on March 24th that we realized it was just another "symbolic" statement.
Now, "Crypto President" Trump has completely shut up. As for David Sacks, the White House had already written a script for him: as the crypto czar, he would stand in the spotlight, translate Trump's campaign slogan of "making America the global crypto capital" into a few decent political moves, and then, once the show was over, it was time to withdraw. David Sacks, now co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, stated that he will continue to work on artificial intelligence policy and technology strategy, without even mentioning cryptography.
The former crypto czar is gone, and Trump's ambiguous relationship with cryptocurrency has also come to an end.
