Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump walks off the stage after speaking at a campaign rally at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on July 20, 2024.
Anna Money Tree | Getty Images
NASHVILLE — Former President Donald Trump makes the biggest headlines Bitcoin The race for the votes and campaign cash of America’s frontline fintech adopters took center stage in the 2024 presidential race at the annual conference on Saturday afternoon.
The Republican presidential candidate will also host a fundraiser in Nashville, with ticket prices up to $844,600. In June of this year, as the Bitcoin industry increasingly turned to the Trump camp for support, BTC Inc. CEO David Bailey, who organized the conference, pledged to raise $100 million and win over 5 million voters for Trump's re-election.
Trump addressed the Bitcoin community directly from the main podium, the latest in a months-long campaign to woo the cryptocurrency ranks, including accepting donations of virtual tokens, pledging to end President Joe Biden’s “crypto Currency Wars” and advocates that all future Bitcoins for cryptocurrencies will be made in the United States. It's also a major shift for the Republican presidential candidates.
Trump publicly refutes Bitcoin When he was in the White House. exist July 2019, he stated that he was “not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.” He said tokens are not money and their value “comes out of thin air,” and warned that unregulated crypto assets could help facilitate drug trafficking and “other illegal activities.”
“Bitcoin looks like a scam,” he said in a 2021 phone interview with Fox. “I don't like it because it's another currency that competes with the dollar.”
“I want the dollar to be the world's currency, that's what I've always said,” Trump continued during his conversation with Fox.
But five years later, a presidential election loss and millions more dollars invested by the cryptocurrency lobby, the Republican presidential candidate is now making headlines in the space. The largest Bitcoin conference Nashville's annual event kicks off Thursday.
Trump's shift in attitude toward Bitcoin comes as Republicans pledge to cut through red tape from the Biden-Harris administration in an effort to turn cryptocurrency regulation into a November ballot issue, especially as inflation consistently ranks among voters in polls case of greatest concern.
As cryptocurrency lobbyists and supporters gain more influence in Washington, it raises questions about whether Democrats will continue the hard-line regulatory approach of past years or relax their stance.
Bitcoin 2024 Conference Organizers said they briefly discussed having Vice President Kamala Harris attend the meeting, but she ultimately declined. But billionaire businessman Mark Cuban posted on The policy may be implemented.
Trump’s 180 on Bitcoin
Trump's recent resurgence in sentiment toward the digital asset space has coincided with a sudden influx of interest and cash from the country's top tech talent.
He has raised more than $4 million in a variety of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, the U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin USDC and various meme coins, with donors from 12 states, including some battleground states.
Cryptocurrency billionaire twins and venture capitalists Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss are leading the charge, each donating 15.57 Bitcoin, or just over $1 million at the time of the donation, according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission — though they received partial refunds. payment because the donation exceeded the $844,600 limit.
There are many other pro-cryptocurrency venture capitalists who have also pledged millions of dollars to the Trump campaign.
Venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz Tell employees at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) that they plan to make significant donations to political action committees supporting the Trump campaign. Trump has been backed by partners at Sequoia Capital, as well as by venture capitalist David Sacks, who helped raise $12 million at a fundraiser at the former president's home in San Francisco. Chief Legal Officer of Centralized Cryptocurrency Exchange Coin Library Blockchain giant Ripple was also present.
These members of the tech elite also contribute heavily to pro-crypto super PACs like Fairshake, which has raised more than $200 million to elect pro-crypto candidates up and down the ballot and in both parties.
But NBC News reports It finds the vice president's team is looking to win over undecided donors from some big tech companies, many of whom remain on the sidelines as President Joe Biden continues to enter the race. Their attitudes may change now that the vice president is the party's de facto nominee.
It helps that Harris has a long track record in California.
She has been raising money in the tech world for years, including from those in Amazon, letter, Microsoft and apple.
“The transformation that has taken place in the past three days has been dramatic,” said Steve Westly, a venture capitalist and former California gubernatorial candidate. told NBC News. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a level of enthusiasm at any event I’ve been involved in.”
Meanwhile, Trump's vice presidential running mate J.D. Vance will hold his own fundraiser in Palo Alto on Monday.
