Trump ally in Congress Brandon Gill has quietly become one of Capitol Hill’s most aggressive Bitcoin accumulators, newly filed financial disclosures reveal.
According to a periodic transaction report submitted to the House clerk on November 18, the Texas Republican disclosed fresh purchases totaling as much as $300,000 across Bitcoin itself and shares of the largest U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund.
Gill, a freshman lawmaker and reliable supporter of former President Donald Trump, reported buying between $100,000 and $250,000 worth of Bitcoin on October 20. Just over a week later, on October 29, he added exposure through traditional markets, purchasing between $15,001 and $50,000 in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the leading spot Bitcoin ETF by assets under management.
As is standard in congressional disclosures, the exact dollar amounts are not listed; instead, lawmakers must report trades within broad ranges, making it impossible to know precisely how much Gill spent. Even using those ranges, however, the documents show that he has become one of the more heavily invested members of Congress in the flagship cryptocurrency.
The latest report builds on an already substantial position. Since taking office in January, Gill has accumulated up to $2.6 million worth of Bitcoin, based on the upper bounds of the transaction ranges disclosed throughout the year. That puts him in a rare group of federal lawmakers with seven-figure exposure to digital assets—and makes his financial interests closely aligned with the fate of Bitcoin’s price and regulatory environment.
Gill’s background helps explain his comfort with this level of risk. Before entering politics, he worked as an investment banker, a career that typically involves managing complex financial products and making large, directional bets. That experience likely informs his decision to combine direct ownership of Bitcoin with exposure through a regulated ETF like IBIT, which trades on traditional stock exchanges and can be held in standard brokerage and retirement accounts.
The dual strategy—holding both physical Bitcoin (or its equivalent on a custody platform) and ETF shares—offers distinct advantages. Direct Bitcoin holdings give an investor maximum control and the ability to move or self-custody assets on-chain, but they come with technical and security challenges. A spot ETF, by contrast, simplifies compliance and reporting, something especially pertinent for a member of Congress under public scrutiny, while still tracking the underlying asset’s price.
Gill’s growing crypto portfolio also has political overtones. As a close ally of Donald Trump, who has lately embraced a pro-crypto message on the campaign trail, Gill’s personal investments underscore the emerging alignment between parts of the Republican Party and the digital asset industry. Public filings showing a lawmaker heavily invested in Bitcoin can strengthen the perception that some Republicans are not just rhetorically supportive of crypto but financially tied to its success.
That alignment could shape policy debates in concrete ways. Gill sits on the House Budget Committee, a perch that, while not directly tasked with writing securities or commodity laws, plays a key role in setting fiscal priorities and influencing how federal agencies are funded. A member with millions of dollars in Bitcoin is more likely to favor regulatory clarity, tax rules that don’t disadvantage digital assets, and a stance that encourages domestic innovation rather than driving crypto businesses offshore.
At the same time, such holdings raise familiar questions about conflicts of interest. When lawmakers own substantial stakes in sectors they help oversee or influence indirectly, critics argue that their personal portfolios may color their policy positions. In the case of Bitcoin, issues like capital gains treatment, the classification of digital assets as commodities or securities, and banking access for crypto firms can all materially affect the value of Gill’s investments.
Supporters counter that requiring elected officials to treat crypto differently from stocks, real estate, or other widely held assets would unfairly target one sector. They also note that transparency through regular disclosures is intended to allow voters to judge whether financial interests appear to be driving policy. For now, Gill is complying with the current rules: reporting transactions over the required thresholds and updating the public record as his positions change.
Gill’s behavior also reflects a broader shift in how U.S. politicians approach crypto. Only a few years ago, digital assets were largely seen as niche—or politically risky. Today, a growing number of officeholders openly own Bitcoin, accept crypto donations through compliant channels, or campaign on platforms promising to keep innovation at home. The rise of spot Bitcoin ETFs in particular has made it easier for officials to gain exposure without navigating private wallets or crypto exchanges.
In that context, Gill’s latest six-figure purchase is both a personal bet and a signal. It suggests that at least some lawmakers see Bitcoin not merely as a speculative play but as a long-term asset class worthy of sizable allocation—even amid volatility, macroeconomic uncertainty, and regulatory disputes between federal agencies.
His timing may also be strategic. Bitcoin has gone through multiple boom-and-bust cycles, with long stretches of drawdowns followed by sharp recoveries often associated with its programmed “halving” events and shifts in liquidity conditions. An investor with an investment banking background might view these cycles as opportunities to build a position gradually, rather than chase euphoric peaks. The series of transactions Gill has reported throughout the year hints at a dollar-cost-averaging approach: incremental entries at different price points rather than one massive, all-in trade.
Looking ahead, Gill’s holdings will likely continue to attract attention every time a new disclosure drops. If he keeps buying into Bitcoin and IBIT, that pattern may be read as a vote of long-term confidence in the asset class—and as an indication of how deeply crypto has penetrated the financial lives of America’s political elite. Conversely, any large sale or reduction could be interpreted as a signal that even well-known crypto advocates in government are taking profits or reassessing risk.
For now, the story is straightforward: a first-term congressman from Texas, with a Wall Street pedigree and a close political connection to Donald Trump, has steadily built one of the largest Bitcoin positions currently visible in congressional financial reports—and he is still adding to it, six figures at a time.