Cryptocurrencies are still fresh and almost anyone can create them – even Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee once referred to it as “thin air” though he supports it now. Recently, Bitcoin has gone up, and some attributed it to a political change to the Republican Party before the 2024 elections.
As of October 15, Trump took to X (previously Twitter) to say that crypto is the future and that he thinks that it is amazing. He also said he would like for the U.S. to control digital assets.
Remember back in September, Standard Chartered analysts said if Trump get in then it would take Bitcoin to $125,000 by years end? It is very different from when Trump termed Bitcoins as a fake currency. The btcpronews investigated the transformation of trump from bitcoin hater to a promoter.
Trump’s Crypto Shift: From Doubts to Digital Gains
Trump tweeted in July last year stating, “I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency, including Facebook’s ‘Libra’- a currency that is not backed by a country and which I don’t believe has any real value.” He also talked of the risks involved with ‘unregulated crypto assets,’ noting that the latter may be employed for illicit business such as in drug peddling.
In fact, after exiting the White House in January 2021, former President Trump maintained his negative stance towards Bitcoin. And he was banned from X, which used to be called Twitter, for some violation of their rules. He recently referred to Bitcoin as a ‘scam’ on Fox Business, after describing it as a competitor to the US dollar in July 2021.
“Bitcoin, it just seems like a scam […] I don’t like it because it is another currency competing against the dollar. Essentially, it is a currency competing against the dollar. I want the dollar to be the currency of the world, that’s what I’ve always said.”
Just a year after calling Bitcoin a scam, Trump made his first big step into the crypto world by launching an NFT collection in late 2022. These NFTs were digital trading cards of himself as a superhero, sold for $99 each. This was his first major public move after announcing his 2024 presidential campaign.
The NFT sale raised $8.9 million, and by August 2023, Trump revealed he had between $250,000 and $500,000 in a crypto wallet. By May 2024, blockchain firm Arkham reported that his onchain crypto holdings had grown to over $10 million.
Trump Bitcoin transformation: Bitcoin mining and industry support
With the U.S. presidential election just weeks away on Nov. 5, Trump has embraced his role as the pro-crypto candidate throughout 2024.
By June, he expressed strong support for Bitcoin mining, urging the government to mine all remaining Bitcoin in the U.S., claiming it would boost the country’s energy dominance.
In the same month, Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss pledged $2 million to support Trump’s reelection, reflecting the growing industry backing.
In September, Trump became the first U.S. president to use Bitcoin in a payment, purchasing hamburgers with BTC at a New York bar.
Despite this shift, Trump has not addressed his past criticisms of Bitcoin. Whether he will continue his pro-crypto stance if reelected remains uncertain.
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