About 40% of CEOs on Trump’s Beijing trip have crypto ties

About 40% of the roughly 17 U.S. chief executives traveling with President Trump to Beijing from May 13 to 15 have links to cryptocurrencies and digital assets, according to a White House delegation list.

The delegation includes executives from finance, technology, aerospace and agriculture. Named attendees include Apple’s Tim Cook, Tesla’s Elon Musk, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman, Boeing’s Kelly Ortberg, Citi’s Jane Fraser, Goldman Sachs’ David Solomon, Visa and Mastercard leaders and other corporate chiefs. Chipmakers and aerospace suppliers such as Qualcomm and Micron are also on the roster, along with Cargill’s chief executive representing agricultural exporters.

Several companies on the list have direct exposure to digital assets. BlackRock operates the largest spot Bitcoin ETF, Tesla holds a reported bitcoin position of 11,509 BTC, Visa and Mastercard have been developing stablecoin settlement rails, and Goldman Sachs maintains cryptocurrency trading operations. Officials and market observers who reviewed the roster calculate that about 40% of the group has notable exposure to crypto or related products.

The visit is scheduled to pursue commercial commitments and policy talks. Delegation members are expected to discuss aircraft purchases and soybean sales while raising concerns about semiconductor export rules and supply-chain access. Boeing and GE Aerospace executives are present for aircraft negotiations, and Cargill will press agricultural sales that rely heavily on Chinese buyers.

Financial firms on the trip are aiming to protect existing licenses and seek reciprocal market access in China. Analyst Paul Barron warned that “in exchange for Trump potentially easing secondary sanctions on Chinese banks, these firms are signaling that Wall Street is still open for Chinese investment.”

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang was not listed among attendees; Nvidia shares rose after the roster became public. The absence of a leading chip executive was noted by market participants monitoring the trip’s balance between commercial outreach and export-control discussions.

Officials said outcomes on tariffs, artificial intelligence export controls and access to rare earth materials will be watched for indications of private-sector influence on talks. Market participants will also monitor any changes in cross-border financial flows, which could affect asset managers and trading desks involved in digital assets if restrictions are eased.

The trip follows past state visits where corporate orders and memorandums of understanding were visible results. This delegation groups executives from sectors directly affected by U.S.-China policy — finance, semiconductors, aerospace and agriculture — alongside government talks in Beijing.