The Trump administration is building closer ties to crypto

Summary

Marketplace Morning Report: The Trump Administration is Building Closer Ties to Crypto
Release Date: May 28, 2025
Host: David Brancaccio

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Trump Administration's Pro-Crypto Shift

Timestamp: 01:33 – 02:30

In this episode, Marketplace's Samantha Fields delves into the significant policy shift under the Trump administration towards cryptocurrency. Previously perceived as adversarial, the Biden administration had frequently initiated enforcement actions against the crypto sector, fostering a climate of uncertainty and caution among investors. Samantha highlights Irene Redboard from TRM Labs' observation:

"There’s been a sea change. The SEC has dropped a number of Biden-era investigations and lawsuits. The White House announced a strategic bitcoin reserve."
[01:45]

Olga Kharif of Bloomberg notes the changing landscape:

"Until recently, most big banks were reluctant to engage with crypto, but now they're building within the digital assets ecosystem."
[02:10]

This newfound engagement includes the introduction of Bitcoin ETFs and the issuance of stablecoins, actions that signify growing institutional acceptance. Samantha underscores that although crypto remains volatile and risky, the Trump administration's supportive messaging has fostered a perception of reduced risk, potentially attracting more investors.

Elon Musk Criticizes GOP's Tax and Spending Bill

Timestamp: 02:56 – 05:18

Transitioning from crypto, David Brancaccio introduces a segment by Henry Epp regarding Elon Musk's unexpected criticism of the GOP's tax and spending bill. Musk, known for his efforts to reduce government spending through his initiative, the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), expressed disappointment in the proposed legislation:

"I was like disappointed to see the massive spending, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it and undermines the work that the Doge team is doing."
[03:00]

Henry Epp reports that Musk's Doge initiative claims to have saved $175 billion, although this figure remains unverified by multiple news outlets. The GOP's tax bill is projected to raise the federal deficit by over $3 trillion over a decade, a stark contrast to the modest savings reported by Musk's team. This criticism marks a rare public dissent from Musk, who had previously been a strong supporter of President Trump, especially after contributing to his reelection campaign.

Corporate Pledges to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

Timestamp: 05:57 – 09:29

David Brancaccio shifts focus to the corporate commitments made to support Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) following the social justice movements sparked by George Floyd's murder five years ago. Marketplace's Kimberly Adams explores the landscape of these pledges, highlighting both the surge and subsequent tapering of corporate investments.

Denise Smith, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation, remarks:

"Even though post-George Floyd corporate commitments have made an impact, many of those investments have tapered off. HBCUs have failed to maintain pace with non-HBCU institutions in donations."
[06:30]

Mary Beth Gassman from Rutgers elaborates on the nature of these investments:

"The grants were often announced on press releases bundled together with other announcements, making it difficult to ascertain the total amount promised to HBCUs."
[06:45]

One of the most notable contributions comes from philanthropist Mackenzie Scott, who donated over $500 million in no-strings-attached grants to at least 23 HBCUs. Additionally, corporations like Morgan Stanley have initiated programs such as the HBCU Scholars program, committing around $12 million to provide full scholarships to students. Susan Reed, Morgan Stanley's Global Head of Talent, shares the program's impact:

"We had 58 students in the program, with thirteen graduating this year. We're very proud of that."
[07:15]

Target is another key player, having committed $100 million to racial justice organizations, including HBCUs. Their partnership with the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) involved $5,000 scholarships for top-performing students. Although the program faced a temporary hiatus due to Target scaling back some DEI commitments, it has recently resumed, accepting new applications.

Denise Smith emphasizes the ongoing challenges:

"With funding cuts to the Department of Education and programs that support these institutions, it will take a lot more investment for HBCUs to thrive long-term."
[08:50]

The segment underscores the critical need for sustained and increased investment to ensure the longevity and success of HBCUs, despite the initial surge in corporate pledges.

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Conclusion

This episode of Marketplace Morning Report provides a comprehensive overview of pivotal developments in the realms of cryptocurrency policy under the Trump administration, critical political commentary from Elon Musk on fiscal policies, and the evolving landscape of corporate support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Through expert insights and notable quotations, the report encapsulates the dynamic interplay between government policies, corporate commitments, and their broader economic and social implications.

Transcript

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[David Brancaccio]

From all of us at Marketplace, thank you to everyone who stepped up during our May fundraiser. We're so grateful. Now more than ever. The support of our Marketplace investors means so much. Your generosity keeps this work going. We made great progress toward our goal but ultimately fell a little short. Every donation matters, especially as we plan for an uncertain future for public media. If you didn't get a chance to we need you now. Head to marketplace.org donate and again, thank you in a few minutes. What happened to the pledges to help historically black campuses from five years ago? I'm David Brancaccio in New York, first on the program at Bitcoin 2025, said to be the world's biggest event devoted to digital currency. Vice President J.D. vance and the White House AI and crypto czar David Sachs. Clear signal is that the Trump administration loves its crypto. Here's Marketplace's Samantha Fields.

[Samantha Fields]

The Biden administration was not exactly seen as being friendly to crypto. Almost every day a new enforcement action was announced by agencies like the securities and Exchange Commission. Olga Kharif at Bloomberg says, because of that, for the last few years, the overall impression a lot of investors got was that crypto is not a safe place to be. Just a few months into the Trump administration, Irene Redboard at TRM Labs says there's been a sea change. The SEC has dropped a number of Biden era investigations and lawsuits. The White House announced a strategic bitcoin reserve.

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What we've seen is a real policy shift towards engagement rather than enforcement alone.

[Samantha Fields]

Until recently, Redboard says most big banks had been reluctant to have much to do with crypto.

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But every one of them now is building something in the digital assets ecosystem. Whether you're thinking about like buying Bitcoin through ETFs or issuing a stablecoin, all.

[Samantha Fields]

Of this is helping crypto gain legitimacy, says Olga Karif at Bloomberg. And will likely help attract more institutional and individual investors because there is a perception of less risk in crypto. Although of course crypto is highly volatile very risky, but there is a perception that it's less so because of some of the messaging coming from the Trump administration. I'm Samantha Fields for Marketplace.

[David Brancaccio]

The prominent CEO who led the effort to cut government programs and federal jobs is criticizing the GOP's tax and spending bill currently before the U.S. senate. The criticism is from an excerpt of an interview that Elon Musk gave to cbs. The interview, slated for air this weekend on CBS Sunday Morning. Marketplace's Henry Epp has more Musk has.

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Rarely criticized President Donald Trump since pouring money into his re election effort last year, but he told CBS he's not happy with the president's tax and spending bill. So you know, I was like disappointed to see the massive spending bull, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it and undermines the work that the Doge team is doing. DOGE is the so called Department of Government Efficiency, the group Musk led with the stated intent of cutting government spending. The group's website claims to have saved $175 billion. That's far short of Musk's original goal, and multiple news outlets have not been able to verify much of those claims. The the GOP tax bill is estimated to raise the federal deficit by over $3 trillion over 10 years, far outstripping any cuts made by Musk's team. I'm Henry AP for Marketplace. For the ones who get it done, the most important part is the one you need now and the best partner is the one who can deliver. That's why millions of maintenance and repair pros trust Grainger because we have professional grade supplies for every industry, even hard to find products. And we have same day pickup and next day delivery on most orders. But most importantly, we have an unwavering commitment to help keep you up and running. Call clickranger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done. Offer valid on standard browsers. Us only When I heard about Date My Age I thought, really? But there I was in my empty quiet house, my laptop on the kitchen counter and I typed in my name. Looking for a man between the ages of 40 to 60. Sure, why not?

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[David Brancaccio]

After the murder of George Floyd five years ago and the social justice protests that followed, many corporations pledged to do more to support black communities. That led to a flood of pledges and new investments in, for instance, Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Marketplace's Kimberly Adams checked up.

[Samantha Fields]

When businesses started looking around in 2020 for where to put the money they were allocating for corporate diversity pledges, many of them turned to historically Black colleges and univers. We were able to see a lot of folks making commitments to racial justice and also being educated about the underfunding of HBCUs. Denise Smith is a senior fellow at the Century Foundation. At that time we saw this really big surge in donations to HBCUs, but it's tough to get a firm number for just how much was promised to HBCUs in total. The grants were often announced on press releases bundled together with other announcements, says Mary Beth Gassman, who teaches at Rutgers, where she also directs the center for Minority Serving Institutions. I mean, I think the most substantial gifts were by philanthropist Mackenzie Scott, not giving as a corporation or foundation, but giving as an individual. Scott reportedly gave more than $500 million in no strings attached grants to at least 23 HBCUs, but corporations made smaller pledges as well. For example, Morgan Stanley started up its HBCU Scholars program, committing to spend about $12 million to offer full scholarships to five students a year at three schools. We had all in 58 students in the program. Thirteen graduated this year. We're very proud of that. Susan Reed is the company's global head of talent. A number of them interned with the firm and two of the students from this graduating class will be joining Morgan Stanley as full time employees later this summer. Even companies that are pulling back on racial justice commitments in other areas to avoid the White House's ire seem to still feel safe giving to HBCUs. Here's Mary Beth Gassman at Rutgers again. One that I'm particularly interested in is Target because they promised a hundred million dollar commitment to racial justice organizations and HBCUs were part of that. In 2021, Target partnered with the United Negro College fund to grant $5,000 scholarships to A students at HBCUs and gave those Target scholars additional funding as their studies progressed. I am, I am, I am a Target scholar and my future has no limits. The program disappeared from the UNCF website for a while as Target publicly began to roll back some of its DEI commitments, but it recently resurfaced, with applications open for a new round this year. UNCF declined an interview for this story, and Target didn't respond to multiple requests for interviews. Denise Smith at the Century foundation says even though post George Floyd corporate commitments have made an impact, many of those investments have tapered off. Unfortunately, what we are still seeing is that HBCUs have failed to maintain pace with non HBCU institutions donations, smith says. Especially with funding cuts to the Department of Education and programs that support these institutions, it will take a lot more investment for them to thrive long term. In Washington, I'm Kimberly Adams for Marketplace.

[David Brancaccio]

Thanks, Kimberly. In New York, I'm David Brancaccio. It's the Marketplace Morning Report from apm, American Public Media.

[Samantha Fields]

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