“I’m Not Sure I’d Want to Take It Away”

Donald Trump,  the 45th US President and likely contender for the Republican nomination in 2024, indicates a favorable stance towards cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. During an interview with CNBC, Trump suggested that, should he return to the presidency, he wouldn’t impose stringent regulations on cryptocurrencies.

People are using it… There has been a lot of use of that. And I’m not sure that I’d want to take it away at this point.

Trump acknowledged the growing prevalence of digital assets in transactions and expressed a general openness to cryptocurrency, despite his stated preference for the U.S. dollar. He shared an anecdote about the surprising success of his “Never Surrender” golden high-top sneakers, which were available for purchase with cryptocurrency. Trump’s experiment in accepting crypto payments for merchandise demonstrated to him the solid market presence and user base of digital currencies.

In his words, Trump elaborated on his experience and observations about cryptocurrency, “I do little things sometimes for fun and you know, make money with it, but I have fun with it too… sometimes we’ll let people pay through Bitcoin. If you think of it, it’s an additional form of currency. And I used to say 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, [crypto] has taken on a life [of its own].”

He continued, detailing the success of a limited edition sneaker run, “I did a thing that people smile at but it was wild. We did 1,000 sneakers, so a limited edition sneaker run, and you could go through our crazy new currencies because that’s what I call them. They’re crazy whether it’s Bitcoin or others. And so many people were buying these things. Ultimately, the last pair of sneakers sold for approximately, I hear, $450,000… So it just took off, and I noticed that so many of them were paid for with the new currency, cryptocurrency, and I couldn’t believe the amount.”

Trump also reflected on the adoption and use of cryptocurrencies, “People are using it… There has been a lot of use of that. And I’m not sure that I’d want to take it away at this point.”

Trump himself ventured into the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) by launching collection on the Ethereum-based platform OpenSea in December 2022. This move came shortly after he announced his bid for the 2024 presidential election, further illustrating his engagement with digital assets. Trump’s own crypto holdings surged to over $2.5 million back in January, driven by a rally of his own memecoin.