Donald Trump, who as president was “not a fan” of cryptocurrencies, has in recent months made a strategic pivot to embrace Bitcoin and crypto, sensing an advantage against incumbent Joseph Biden in the 2024 election.
While Biden has taken an antagonistic approach to crypto, Trump directly appeals to the increasing voter bloc of Bitcoin advocates. Now during a recent fundraiser event where he raised $12 million, Trump presented himself as the “crypto president”.
Market spectators have made the case that a Trump victory in 2024 could ultimately turn the tides in Bitcoin’s favor.
Trump Doubles Down On Pro-Crypto Stance
Ex-POTUS Donald J. Trump tightened his recent embrace of crypto during a recent fundraiser, promising a solid future for the fledgling digital assets sector in the US.
According to a June 7 Reuters report, Trump declared “he would be the crypto president” while talking at a fundraising event at the Sacks’ residence in the upscale Pacific Heights neighborhood hosted by Craft Ventures’ general partner, David Sacks, and former Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya.
Trump drew in a $12 million haul at the San Francisco fundraiser to fund his promotional initiatives ahead of the November 5 presidential election. Sources familiar with the matter reported that Trump did not give specific details about his proposed cryptocurrency policy. However, it is a more conciliatory stance than the Biden administration has taken.
Is Trump Crypto’s Unexpected Savior?
From saying crypto is “based on thin air” and used for drugs and other illicit activities, Trump is now accepting crypto donations, making good on his pledge to become the first major party candidate to embrace Bitcoin, Ether, Dogecoin, and other digital currencies.
He also recently vowed to commute the sentence of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht — who has become something of a martyr for many in the cryptoverse — and promised to make the U.S. a leader in the digital assets industry. “Our country must be the leader in the field, there is no second place,” Trump postulated in a post on Truth Social last month.
Trump’s recent pledge to become a crypto crusader follows the Biden government’s vetoing of a resolution that would have overruled the Securities and Exchange Commission’s contentious Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) No. 121.
The founder and CEO of blockchain analytics firm Messari, Ryan Selkis, observed that the crypto industry will face a series of adverse regulations should Biden be reelected. On the other hand, Standard Chartered analysts expect BTC price to leap to the aspirational $150K mark by the end of the year in case of a Trump victory.
