Under President Donald Trump, the U.S. is embracing cryptocurrency like no other time in crypto's brief 16-year history. And it's not just Bitcoin (BTC -1.94%), either. It's a full-spectrum embrace of everything crypto, including altcoins, stablecoins, and meme coins.
Not surprisingly, crypto enthusiasts are proclaiming this to be a new "Golden Age" for cryptocurrency. But are they right? And if they are, what should you be buying now?
Signs of a new "Golden Age" are everywhere
When Trump campaigned for president in 2024, he promised a complete shakeup of the crypto industry, and that's exactly what he has delivered. The pace of change has been so fast that it's been hard to keep up.
A major shakeup at the Securities and Exchange Commission has taken the regulatory shackles off the crypto industry. That has opened the door for companies such as Coinbase Global (COIN -2.08%) and cryptocurrencies such as XRP (XRP -3.87%), both of which were facing regulatory issues heading into 2025.
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A new "anything goes" approach to crypto has given the green light to MicroStrategy (MSTR 1.80%), which is now doing business as Strategy, to continue its epic Bitcoin-buying spree. Following its lead, new companies are being formed that do nothing but buy Bitcoin.
And, perhaps most importantly, a pro-crypto approach has led corporations and institutions that previously wouldn't touch digital assets to get involved with crypto. At the same time, the U.S. government is now looking for ways to buy Bitcoin for its new Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which launched in March.
Too far, too fast?
So, what could possibly go wrong? A lot, actually. For one, there have already been serious questions about potential conflicts of interest involving the Trump family and even Trump himself. That's because Trump launched a new Official Trump meme coin days before assuming office, and his family launched a new crypto venture called World Liberty Financial during the 2024 election.
There are now all kinds of questions swirling around the amount of foreign money that is being pumped into these projects. Even if there is no outright corruption or pay-for-play influence peddling going on, the optics are bad and could cause investors to lose their faith in crypto.
Moreover, the new hands-off approach to crypto will likely lead to entirely new crypto investment products that simply aren't suitable for the average investor. The closest parallel, of course, is what happened before the global financial crisis of 2008, when complex Wall Street investment products involving mortgages threatened to take down the entire financial system.
What should you be buying now?
Crypto is already highly risky and volatile, so it's best to simplify matters as much as possible. So, for example, you might set a rule only to invest in cryptocurrencies with a market cap of $1 billion or higher. That would limit you to the top 75 cryptocurrencies.
From there, you could simplify matters even further. For example, you can easily cross off any meme coins in the top 75, including Dogecoin (DOGE -8.94%) and Shiba Inu (SHIB -7.16%).
In order to insulate a portfolio from tariff uncertainty, you could focus on "Made in America" crypto companies. For example, I'd choose American Bitcoin mining stocks over Canadian Bitcoin mining stocks. Also, I'd buy cryptos using American crypto exchanges -- such as Coinbase -- that are regulated and audited by U.S. entities. And I'd focus on companies that have strong ties to the White House. Any time there's a major crypto event (such as the White House Crypto Summit in March), check to see who showed up and who didn't.
A new Gilded Age?
Historically, the crypto industry has been referred to as "The Wild West." But I think a new comparison might be more accurate these days: "The Gilded Age." During the late 19th century, the Gilded Age was the great age of American industrialization after the Civil War, when powerful families such as the Vanderbilts, Carnegies, Mellons, and Rockefellers rose to power. During this era, great fortunes were made in railroads, steel, and oil.
But, as historians are quick to point out, this was also an age of great social inequality, political corruption, and materialistic excess, all "gilded over" with a thin veneer of gold. Look too closely under the surface, and you might not like what you might find.
So, be careful about just how much of your portfolio you're putting into crypto these days. Yes, Bitcoin is now being talked about as "digital gold," and crypto enthusiasts are raving about a new "Golden Age" for crypto, but, as the old saying goes, all that glitters is not gold.
