Pressley Also Slammed Trump for Ripping Off Consumers with Meme Coin, Calls for CFPB to be Reopened

Video (YouTube)

WASHINGTON – In a House Financial Services Committee hearing, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) discussed the rise of cryptocurrency scams and emphasized the critical role of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in safeguarding consumers. Congresswoman Pressley also sharply criticized Donald Trump and Elon Musk for halting the critical work of the agency and slammed Trump for ripping consumers off with his crypto meme coin.

Earlier this week, Congresswoman Pressley rallied with Senator Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member Maxine Waters, and advocates to protest Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s unlawful takeover of the CFPB.

A full transcript of her exchange with witnesses is below and the full video is available here.

Transcript: In Hearing, Pressley Uplifts CFPB, Slams Trump-Musk Gutting of Agency with Crypto Scams on the Rise
House Financial Services Committee
February 11, 2025

REP. PRESSLEY: Thank you to the witnesses for joining us today. There is much excitement around digital assets, especially cryptocurrency. Understandably so.

Cryptocurrency is the new thing. It’s shiny, it’s flashy, people on the internet are always telling stories about how much money they are making on their investments in the latest coin.

But the stories that stick with me the most are not on social media posts. They are the ones I hear in community or that come to my office as casework. 

Like the college student whose digital wallet was drained and they don’t know who to turn to for help. Or the elder who lost everything when responding to text messages from a number that was pretending to be their grandchild in order to set up a crypto-access account. 

These stories and many more are the heartbreaking reality of crypto-scams. And I believe we all – government and industry – should do everything we can to stop them.

Mr. Kim, you are the President and Acting CEO of Crypto Council for Innovation. Do you think it is important for government to play a role in reducing scamming and fraudulent activity through cryptocurrency? 

MR. KIM: Thank you very much for your question, Congresswoman. As a general matter, it’s extremely important for any counter illicit activity to be stopped, and CCI is committed to coming up with policy solutions. 

My opinion is that the best way to accomplish this is through a comprehensive federal framework for both market structure and payment stable coins to make sure there are consumer disclosures, that there are consumer protection standards, and all of this information can help prevent scam. At CCI, we run different types of educational aware campaigns with our members to make sure these types of scams do not come to be.

In the US, centralized exchanges, as my colleague to the right of me mentioned, they are subject to robust AML CFT oversight, but no amount of counter illicit activity is acceptable, and CCI is committed to working with you and your office to making sure that we promote awareness and education to best stop consumer scams. 

REP. PRESSLEY: Thank you. 

Actually, my next question for the entire panel of witnesses, so, please raise your hand if you oppose crypto-scams and support protecting consumers.

Excellent. Let the record reflect that every witness there raised their hand.

I’m glad we can all agree on that. 

But it’s not enough to simply talk about it, we need to be about it. And that’s why I want to bring attention to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 

This small but mighty government agency is one of the top watchdogs fighting hard for working class people and their bank accounts. And that’s precisely the reason Elon Musk is trying to kill it.

If you are not familiar, the CFPB has put 21 billion – with a b – dollars back in people’s pockets. 

And when it comes to digital assets, CFPB collected data from consumers and found that 40% of crypto-asset complaints were about fraud and scams. They then use that information to develop resources for consumers and prioritize regulations for crypto firms to reduce predatory behavior. 

But the agency is now under attack. Elon Musk and his so-called DOGE bros have kicked out the employees, locked the door, and stopped all work from continuing. And they did it with the blessing of our Scammer- and Harmer-in-Chief, Donald Trump. 

Earlier this year, Trump launched his own cryptocurrency meme coin. He promoted it on social media and people invested in it. But then it quickly lost value, roughly 40%, when Trump insiders pulled their money for a profit, resulting in working class people stuck with the losses. It was a scam.

So let’s be clear: on one hand, Donald Trump will steal from people through a crypto-scam. On the other hand, the hardworking staff at CFPB will fight to get people their money back.

And that’s why we need this essential agency to be reopened to finish its necessary work.

Mr. Massad, the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau, before it was attacked by Elon Musk and DOGE proposed that crypto payments are subject to the Electronic Fund Transfer Act. Why do you think that is important? 

MR. MASSAD: Well, I think, Congresswoman, thank you for the question. 

I think we have to have a complete framework of regulation. And you know, particularly given the fact that the industry likes to push back against whatever regulator is trying to do something, you know. 

And to your point about shutting down the CFPB, we cannot build strong financial markets if we’re going to sort of regulate by a pendulum swing, you know, sort of go way over here, one administration, then go way over here the other administration. I mean, reasonable people can disagree with some of their rules, but you don’t shut down the agency.

REP. PRESSLEY: Thank you. I yield back.

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