Bitcoin jumps to fresh record as Trump offers some praise for the cryptocurrency
By Joseph Adinolfi
‘There has been a lot of use of that [Bitcoin] and I’m not sure that I would want to take it away at this point’
“There has been a lot of use of that [Bitcoin] and I’m not sure that I would want to take it away at this point”Former President Donald Trump
That’s former President Donald Trump speaking favorably about bitcoin, and cryptocurrencies more broadly, during an interview Monday morning with CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
Asked if he had bought bitcoin himself, Trump replied that he hadn’t, but said that he sometimes “lets people pay with bitcoin” or other “crazy new currencies, that’s what I call them crazy new currencies.”
Trump’s comments appeared to help push the pioneering cryptocurrency to a fresh record high north of $72,000 (BTCUSD). Ethereum (ETHUSD), Solana , Dogecoin and a number of other rival cryptocurrencies also saw prices tick higher following Trump’s remarks.
Also: Bitcoin pushes past $70,000 in fresh surge for the cryptocurrency
The former president quickly caveated his pro-bitcoin comments by clarifying that he is “very much a traditionalist” and that he sees maintaining the U.S. dollar’s status as the de facto global reserve currency as a top priority.
Losing the dollar’s reserve-currency status would be like losing a war in terms of the blowback for the U.S. economy.
“I would not allow countries to go off the dollar because when we lose that standard, that will be like losing a revolutionary war, that will be a hit to our country just like losing a war, and we can’t let that happen.”
However, Trump acknowledged that cryptocurrency had “taken on a life” of its own, that there “has been a lot of use” of bitcoin and that he was “not sure if I would want to take that away.”
“If you think of it, it’s a new form of currency. I want one currency, I want the dollar I don’t want people leaving the dollar. I feel that way, but I will tell you it has taken on a life,” Trump said.
The former president then launched into an anecdote about his limited-edition sneakers, some of which were paid for with cryptocurrencies.
“I noticed that so many of them were paid for with the new currency….I couldn’t believe the amount,” Trump said.
See: Trump’s $399 sneakers are already being listed for up to $45,000 on eBay, but can they hold their value?
This wasn’t the first time Trump had commented on bitcoin. The former president previously said there should be some regulation of crypto during a Fox News town hall event ahead of the Republican primary in South Carolina.
Prior to that, he had described bitcoin in more negative terms, saying in 2021 that it was “a disaster waiting to happen.”
-Joseph Adinolfi
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03-11-24 0837ET
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