Bitcoin Price Exposed to Regulatory Reversal with Every New President

US regulators have a history of changing bank crypto rules with every new president since 2017, leaving the price of Bitcoin vulnerable to future policy changes. As of October 2, 2026, Bitcoin is trading at about $85,975, a 3% decline this year and a 28.7% drop over the past year. The current favorable stance toward banks may only last as long as the officials who implemented it, leaving investors vulnerable to future policy changes.

Under the Trump administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) informed national banks that they could hold crypto for their customers. However, the Biden administration took a different approach, mandating that banks obtain their supervisor's approval before engaging in any crypto activities. The SEC's 2022 accounting guidance also made custody more expensive by requiring firms to list customers' crypto as a liability.

The trend shifted again when Trump returned to office, with the SEC eliminating its accounting guidance and the OCC lifting the sign-off requirement. However, the SEC's October 2026 custody proposal remains a regulation, not a law, and can be easily revoked by a future SEC.