Trump’s silence on crypto in Congress speech signals it’s not a priority, says TD Cowen

President Donald Trump made no mention of crypto in his Congress speech on Tuesday night — a notable omission given his recent remarks on the industry — according to investment bank TD Cowen.

This absence suggests that crypto is not a personal priority for Trump, TD Cowen's Washington Research Group, led by Jaret Seiberg, wrote in a note on Wednesday. "If it was a personal priority, then it would have been in the speech," Seiberg said.

The omission particularly stood out because Trump had referenced crypto in prior speeches and on social media just days before the Congress address, according to Seiberg. He views the exclusion as "more substantive" than Trump's silence on other topics like housing and banking, given that the president does have a crypto strategy.

A political explanation

Seiberg pointed to a political explanation for Trump's omission of crypto in the speech, noting that congressional Republicans are working to gain Democratic support for stablecoin legislation in the coming months, and Trump's involvement could complicate that effort. However, he also suggested a more nuanced reason — Trump does not see crypto as a key issue in his larger political agenda.

"Trump talks up crypto when he is before crypto investors. Yet we continue to believe this is not a personal priority," Seiberg said.

Overall, Trump's speech was "long on showmanship and short on substance for even a Donald Trump address," according to Seiberg. "As many commentators noted last night, the address more resembled a campaign rally speech than a State of the Union speech."

The White House will host its first Crypto Summit on Friday, led by Trump's crypto czar, David Sacks. Industry leaders, including Michael Saylor and Brian Armstrong, are expected to attend, with reports hinting at details on a U.S. crypto reserve.