Trump Presses Fed for Rate Cuts at White House Crypto Event

Urges swift passage of the CLARITY Act to establish a regulatory framework for crypto

President Donald Trump said on Aug. 19 that the U.S. economy is performing well and that interest rates should be lower. He renewed pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut rates, criticizing the central bank for maintaining high borrowing costs because of inflation concerns. He also brought top executives from Coinbase, Robinhood and other digital-asset firms to the White House and urged Congress to swiftly pass the CLARITY Act.

Yonhap News reported that Trump made the remarks at a White House event with leading cryptocurrency industry figures. “Interest rates shouldn’t go up because of our country’s success,” he said. “They should be able to come down with that success.”

“When we put out good numbers, they are so afraid of inflation that they keep rates high,” Trump said. “There’s no need for that. Rates should be coming down.” The remarks were the latest criticism of the Fed’s stance of keeping rates elevated out of concern that inflation pressures could intensify. Trump has repeatedly pressed the central bank to lower rates, arguing that it has kept them too high.

Bloomberg reported that Trump also said the so-called CLARITY Act would play a key role in preserving U.S. leadership in emerging technologies. The bill would divide oversight of digital-asset markets between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. It would also clarify regulations for decentralized finance and interest payments on stablecoins.

Those attending included Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi, whose company operates the Kraken exchange, and Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev.

“Congress needs to pass a fair form of the CLARITY Act and move to the next stage,” Trump said. “This is very powerful legislation that will give us a framework to stay ahead of China and every other competitor.”

During his presidency, Trump has cast himself as a strong supporter of the digital-asset industry and pursued industry-friendly policies. But crypto executives have voiced concern that progress made so far may not be firmly secured as the CLARITY Act remains stalled in Congress.

The bill is pending in the Senate as Democrats and Republicans clash over ethics provisions tied to Trump’s own involvement in the digital-asset industry. Trump disclosed that he earned $1.4 billion from crypto- and memecoin-related businesses last year, the largest share of his total income.

Federal regulators, led by the SEC and CFTC, are also moving to close legal gaps in an effort to give the crypto industry clearer regulatory standards. The SEC has proposed exempting certain digital-asset issuances from securities registration requirements to support early-stage startups and fundraising.

CFTC Commissioner Michael Selig and SEC Chair Paul Atkins also attended Trump’s event. The CFTC is set to hold the first meeting of its innovation advisory committee on Aug. 20. The panel includes the chief executives of Coinbase, Robinhood, prediction-market platform Kalshi and Polymarket.

Kang Kyung-ju, Hankyung.com reporter, qurasoha@hankyung.com