Wow, just wow. Donald Trump, the president of the United States, has openly commented on Bitcoin and crypto assets. On Twitter no less.
This is presumably the businessman-turned-most powerful man on Earth’s first public comment on the cryptocurrency space since he began his presidency.
Donald Trump Talks Bitcoin & Crypto
On Friday morning (Asia time), Trump released somewhat of a thread on the cryptocurrency space in an odd turn of events. Presumably responding to the Federal Reserve chair’s comments on Bitcoin, Libra, and related topics, the business mogul explained that “he isn’t a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies”.
As to why, Trump quipped that he doesn’t believe that digital assets are money, adding that they are also known to be very volatile and “based on thin air”. Many of cryptocurrency’s pundits that U.S. Dollars and other fiat monies are similar, in that they are only worth as much as people value them.
Anyhow, that aside, Trump went on to state that unregulated cryptocurrencies can “facilitate unlawful behavior”, touching on the argument put forth by organizations like the IRS, FBI, and so on and so forth.
I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air. Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019
After poking the Bitcoin crowd, Trump went on to bash Libra, writing:
Facebook Libra’s “virtual currency” will have little standing or dependability. If Facebook and other companies want to become a bank, they must seek a new Banking Charter and become subject to all Banking Regulations, just like other Banks, both National…
The American leader’s comments come, as aforementioned, hot on the heels of skepticism of the corporate cryptocurrency by Powell, U.S. House Representatives, leaders of central banks, and other notable people on the stage of global finance and politics. Seeing that this recent denouncement comes straight from Trump, it is unclear how Libra or the rest of the Bitcoin space will move forward.
This seems to be one of the first times that one of the world’s most important people, let alone the president of the United States, have commented on cryptocurrencies in a public forum.
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