David Sacks has responded to accusations that he manipulated crypto markets for personal gain. He called these claims baseless during an episode of The All-In Podcast. Sacks, who is involved with AI and crypto in the White House, faced serious allegations suggesting he inflated his crypto holdings.
He emphasized that he sold all his crypto assets before joining the administration to avoid any conflict of interest. This included Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. Sacks explained that market fluctuations in crypto should not lead to conspiracy theories about his actions. He and his firm, Kraft, liquidated about $200 million in crypto, with $85 million linked to him personally.
Sacks stated that he cleared these assets before starting his role, paid taxes on them, and aimed to prevent any ethical issues. However, critics claimed that even without direct ownership, he was still involved in crypto funds. Sacks clarified that he also withdrew from several crypto investment funds, including Bitwise and Multicoin Capital.
He believes the narrative against him is losing steam. Jason Calacanis, who manages one of the funds he divested from, noted that selling fund interests often results in significant financial losses. Sacks also dismissed the idea that he sought financial gain from his government role, stating he is serving as an unpaid consultant.
He criticized the notion that wealthy individuals enter government for money, calling it a “lazy and stupid” assumption. Sacks explained that divesting his assets was necessary, even if it meant incurring losses. He faced scrutiny over potential conflicts of interest, especially from critics like Senator Elizabeth Warren, who worried he might influence crypto asset choices for the US.
In a recent interview, Sacks clarified that Trump mentioned certain cryptocurrencies because they are among the top five by market cap.
