Eric Trump says Trump family turned pro-crypto after being “debanked”
Eric Trump, son of U.S. President Donald Trump, said the Trump family became pro-crypto after they were effectively “debanked” in the aftermath of the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack. He told reporters that several banks closed hundreds of accounts tied to the Trump Organization without providing reasons, forcing the group to rely on smaller regional banks before finding a new banking partner.
Speaking about the experience, Eric Trump said it exposed how fragile the traditional financial system can be and how easily it can be used as a political tool. “At that time, I realized how fragile the financial system was and how easily it could be weaponized against you,” he said. Industry insiders, he said, had also told him that the Biden administration had applied regulatory pressure that made it harder for crypto companies to access banking services.
The Trump Organization has taken legal action over account closures: Eric Trump noted the group sued Capital One in March, alleging the bank closed its accounts for political reasons and caused financial harm. He has also warned that banks that fail to adopt crypto-related services risk becoming obsolete over the next decade.
Eric Trump expressed support for tokenizing real-world assets as a way to broaden access to investment. He asked why high-value assets such as Trump Tower couldn’t be tokenized to allow billions of people around the world to invest, framing tokenization as a tool to unlock liquidity and democratize ownership.
The Trump family’s ties to the crypto industry have grown in recent years. The family is linked to multiple crypto projects, including an official memecoin called TRUMP that was launched days before Donald Trump’s inauguration as the 47th president, and World Liberty Financial, which launched a USD1 stablecoin on Sept. 16, 2024 and lists Donald Trump as co‑founder emeritus with his sons as co‑founders. Eric and Donald Trump Jr. are also founders of American Bitcoin, a subsidiary of mining firm Hut 8. Reports have suggested substantial crypto-related gains for Donald Trump, claims Eric has denied, and he has even suggested that a family member might run for president again in 2028.
