Nikolas Sargeant
California Representative Ro Khanna is seeking to introduce legislation that would prohibit U.S. government officials, including President Donald Trump and members of Congress, from trading cryptocurrencies and stocks. Speaking on MSNBC, the Democratic lawmaker raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, specifically citing Trump's family connection to the crypto project World Liberty Financial.
The pardon of Zhao is corrupt.
— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) October 27, 2025
I explain simply what's going on.
I am today introducing legislation to ban the president, his family, members of Congress, and all elected officials from trading crypto or stocks. @unusual_whales has been sounding the alarm on this for years. pic.twitter.com/OgibgdnqkK
Khanna criticized the recent pardoning of Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao, calling it an example of corruption. He alleged that CZ's support for World Liberty Financial, which is linked to Trump's son, played a role in the pardon decision. The congressman suggested that financial ties between Binance and the Trump family's crypto venture created an inappropriate quid pro quo arrangement.
While Khanna has been vocal about banning elected officials from cryptocurrency holdings and accepting foreign money, critics have pointed to potential hypocrisy in his position. According to data from Quiver Quant, Khanna himself has conducted $80.3 million worth of stock trades in 2025 alone, with over $580 million in total trading volume since taking office in 2017.
The proposed legislation comes as Congress debates broader restrictions on government officials' financial activities. A bipartisan congressional stock trading bill is expected to be voted on soon, reflecting ongoing concerns about potential conflicts of interest among lawmakers and executive branch officials.
Previous Ethics Concerns Over Trump's Cryptocurrency Dealings
Khanna's legislative push follows mounting scrutiny of the Trump administration's cryptocurrency activities. In September, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Elissa Slotkin requested federal inspectors general to investigate potential ethics violations by Trump administration officials related to cryptocurrency dealings with the United Arab Emirates. Their concerns centered on World Liberty Financial and its connections to sensitive national security matters, including the approval of artificial intelligence chip exports to the UAE.
The senators specifically called for investigations into White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks and U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, citing potential conflicts of interest. Warren has characterized the Trump-backed USD1 stablecoin as a national security risk and previously called for a pause on stablecoin legislation due to these concerns. The senator has been a vocal critic of what she describes as "shady crypto deals" involving the Trump family's ventures and their ties to a $2 billion arrangement with MGX, an Emirati investment firm.
