Trump wants to make the USA a Bitcoin superpower and hold a BTC reserve
As part of his highly anticipated appearance - which was delayed by around an hour - at the Bitcoin conference in Nashville, Donald Trump presented how he would deal with Satoshi Nakamoto's creation as the first pro-Bitcoin president of the USA. Probably the most important announcement: Trump wants to make the USA the "Bitcoin superpower" of the world and keep the 210,000 or so Bitcoin that have been confiscated.
There's the strategic #Bitcoin reserve😅@realDonaldTrump wants the 210,000 or so #BTC confiscated from the US as president behalten🇺🇸
Blocktrainer (@blocktrainer) July 27, 2024
And he said, "Do not sell your Bitcoin."
Donald Trump not only announces that the US will maintain a strategic Bitcoin position under his presidency, but also holds out the prospect that the state will buy the asset itself in future.
Shortly afterwards, the 79-year-old positioned himself as the "pro-Bitcoin president".
I will be the pro-innovation, pro-Bitcoin president that America needs and that our citizens deserve.
Donald Trump
The speech
During his speech, which lasted around three quarters of an hour, he also made a number of other interesting statements regarding Bitcoin:
- He acknowledged that he is the first president of the US to attend a Bitcoin conference.
- Trump addressed Michael Saylor, the founder of the first public company to implement a Bitcoin strategy.
- Trump called it a "big deal" that Bitcoin has become the 9th most valuable asset in the world in such a short time.
- He can imagine Bitcoin overtaking the precious metal gold in terms of market capitalization.
- Trump reiterated that if the US does not embrace Bitcoin, other countries such as China will.
- Donald Trump said: "Bitcoin is going to the moon."
- He emphasized that his opponent Kamala Harris is against cryptocurrencies.
- Trump announced that he would fire SEC chief Gary Gensler on the first day of his inauguration.
- Trump wants to set up a Bitcoin Commission.
- He repeated statements that there will be no CBDC with him as president and that he will protect the right to self-custody.
- He said that it is not Bitcoin that is a threat to the US dollar, but the government or Washington.
- With him as president, Bitcoin and crypto will "skyrocket".
- Trump calculated that the Bitcoin price has performed better during his presidency than under President Joe Biden.
- He recognizes that inflation is a tragedy for the people and is equivalent to a tax.
- He wants the US to become a "Bitcoin mining powerhouse".
- Trump promised again that he would free the founder of the darknet marketplace Silk Road, Ross Ulbricht, on the first day of his inauguration.
Best quote
from@realDonaldTrump 's speech at @TheBitcoinConf so far:
Blocktrainer (@blocktrainer) July 27, 2024
"#Bitcoin stands for freedom, sovereignty and independence from government, coercion and control." - Donald #Trump pic.twitter.com/dCPXzAqssT-
Was the speech still a disappointment?
Ultimately, expectations for Donald Trump's speech were so high that what he ultimately announced was initially seen as more of a disappointment. From this perspective, although there will be a "strategic Bitcoin reserve" under a potential presidency of the 79-year-old, many had probably expected the US government to announce active Bitcoin purchases - as was the case with the speech by presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The fact that the ex-president does not yet appear to be able to fully differentiate between Bitcoin and crypto has probably also put a further damper on the Bitcoin community. In general, the speech also sounded more like a typical Trump election campaign speech with a few "Bitcoin talking points" mixed in.
Nor did the "special guest" announced by the presenters shortly before Donald Trump's speech appear. At times, there were hopes that Trump supporter and Tesla CEO Elon Musk would come by and speak positively about Bitcoin. In the end, no one showed up and so the disappointment was all the greater.
Despite all this, the speech was a historic event. A former and probably even the next president of the USA gives a speech at the Bitcoin conference, recognizes the value of the asset and announces the plan to strategically hold Bitcoin with the state itself.