Kevin Warsh, the nominee for the Federal Reserve chair, has submitted his financial disclosure, revealing a complex portfolio that includes investments in over a dozen blockchain and digital asset companies. The holdings, valued at less than $1,000 each, span DeFi lending, decentralized derivatives, Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks, prediction markets, and Bitcoin payments infrastructure. Warsh has pledged to sell the majority of these assets to avoid potential conflicts of interest. The disclosure also shows that Warsh holds over $100 million in a fund whose underlying assets are not publicly disclosed, and dozens of positions in another fund, some valued at $1-5 million individually.
The divestiture of these assets could be challenging due to their illiquid nature. Even after selling, Warsh will face a complicated recusal landscape, with a one-year cooling-off period for matters directly affecting his recent financial interests. The revelation of Warsh's crypto holdings has sparked interest in the industry, with some seeing it as a positive sign that the incoming Fed chair has a nuanced understanding of the technology, while others are concerned about potential conflicts of interest.