Congressman On Digital Assets Subcommittee Buys Bitcoin ETF Before Trump's Strategic Reserve Announcement

The cryptocurrency world is buzzing this week with news of a Strategic Bitcoin BTC/USD Reserve from President Donald Trump, which comes months after his presidential election victory sent crypto to new all-time highs.

While investors may have loaded up on Bitcoin and related investments ahead of the official Executive Order, one member of Congress also bought ahead of the announcement.

What Happened: Trump's Executive Order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will see the initial funding from Bitcoin owned by the federal government that won't be sold.

"I made the promise, right," Trump said in a video signing the Executive Order Thursday.

The news follows a social media post from Trump on March 2 that said a reserve could include cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum ETH/USD, Solana SOL/USD, Cardano ADA/USD and XRP Token XRP/USD.

Days before Trump's post and the Executive Order, Senator David McCormick (R-Pa.) bought up $65,000 to $150,000 in shares of the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF BITB, according to filings reported by the Benzinga Government Trades page.

McCormick, the former CEO of the hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, narrowly won a Senate seat in the 2024 election. During his Senate campaign, McCormick was endorsed by Coinbase Global CEO Brian Armstrong for his pro-crypto support.

"If you live in Pennsylvania, you should vote for Dave McCormick. He is the better candidate on crypto (among many other credentials," Armstrong said at the time.

Did You Know?

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Why It's Important: A Senator buying Bitcoin ETFs could signal support for the leading cryptocurrency. The purchase and timing could also draw red flags and continue the hot debate of whether members of Congress should be able to profit off of the buying and selling of stocks, options and cryptocurrencies.

On the day of McCormick's ETF purchase (Feb. 26), he was part of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Digital Assets's first hearing.

"2025 is the year for digital assets. Blockchain and digital assets offer Pennsylvania and America a chance to lead the next wave of innovation, enhancing our national security and our economy. Proud to be a member of the inaugural Senate Banking Subcommittee on Digital Assets," McCormick tweeted.

McCormick said blockchain and digital assets are "the next wave of innovation" in a press release detailing the first hearing of the congressional subcommittee.

"This Congress must work alongside President Trump to pass bipartisan digital asset legislation that will guide the future of innovation and secure a robust economic future for the U.S.," McCormick said.

While a pro-crypto Congressman buying Bitcoin ETFs likely isn't a surprise to many, the questionable timing ahead of Trump's announcement could be something to watch.

Price Action: The Bitwise Bitcoin ETEF was trading at $48.47 Friday, down 8.6% year-to-date in 2025, while it is up 31.1% over the last year.

Bitcoin trades at $89,159.47 versus a 52-week trading range of $49,121.24 to $109,114.88. Bitcoin is down 4.6% year-to-date in 2025 and up 33.2% over the last year.

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