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Donald Trump vows to make the US a ‘Bitcoin superpower’ and create a national stockpile of tokens
Former President Donald Trump has promised to make the US cryptocurrency dominant, remove the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and create a national Bitcoin reserve.
During a speech at the Bitcoin Conference 2024 in Nashville on Saturday, he said that under another Trump administration, the US would become the “crypto capital” of the world and a “Bitcoin superpower,” where the token would be mined.
“I promise the Bitcoin community that the day I take the oath of office, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ anti-crypto crusade will end. It will be over. It will be done,” he said. “The moment I take the oath of office, the persecution stops and the weaponization of your industry will end.”
He also promised to fire SEC Chairman Gary Gensler “on day one” and appoint a new chairman, drawing loud applause from the audience. “I didn’t know he was so unpopular,” a surprised Trump said.
Additionally, he said he would appoint a Bitcoin and cryptocurrency advisory board to draft regulatory guidelines, while also ordering the Treasury Department and other federal agencies to cease efforts to develop a central bank digital currency.
“There will never be a CBDC as long as I am president of the United States,” Trump said, adding that he would defend the right to self-custody and create a framework for the expansion of stablecoins, which would increase the dominance of the US dollar.
And despite counting Fox Business in 2021 that “Bitcoin just looks like a scam” and is “another currency competing with the dollar,” he said on Saturday that Bitcoin is not a threat to the dollar.
Trump has also promised to hold 100% of all Bitcoin held by the federal government, which will serve as the core of a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile.”
His embrace of the crypto sector comes after dismissing it for years. In addition to his 2021 remarks, he said in 2019 that he is “not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air.”
President Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race has raised hopes that a lighter regulatory regime would be adopted, whether under a Republican or Democratic administration.
Bitcoin’s price has fallen from its highs in March, when it reached $73,000. But after falling below $60,000 earlier this month, bitcoin has rallied about 17% in recent weeks to edge closer to $70,000 again.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign aides have been reaching out to key players in the cryptocurrency industry to develop relationships that could eventually inform a regulatory framework, while sending a message that Democrats are “pro-business, responsible business,” sources told Financial Times.
The presidential election revealed a major flaw dividing Silicon Valleywith venture capital partners Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowtiz, as well as the Winklevosses supporting Trump.
On the other hand, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, former COO of Meta Sheryl Sandberg and SV Angel’s Ron Conway are among the other big names in tech who have publicly supported Harris.