US Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump made his much-anticipated appearance on the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville on July 27. Trump made several guarantees to the crypto voters in attendance, including what he would do to the US government’s Bitcoin holdings if elected.
What Donald Trump Plans To With The US Bitcoin Holdings
Through the Bitcoin conference, Trump stated that if elected, his administration would implement a policy mandating the US government to maintain “100%” of the Bitcoin it currently holds or acquires. Trump made this statement while remarking that the government has, up until now, “violated a cardinal rule that each Bitcoiner knows by heart,” which isn’t to sell their BTC.
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Data from the on-chain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence shows that the US government currently holds 213,239 BTC ($14.87 billion). Nonetheless, the federal government is thought to have offloaded a few of its holdings prior to now, with its last confirmed sale coming in April when it sold 1,754 BTC.
Trump’s plan for the US to carry all of its Bitcoin holdings undoubtedly provides a bullish outlook for Bitcoin, considering the impact that the US government’s BTC sales have had on the token’s price prior to now. Furthermore, the US holds probably the most Bitcoin amongst all governments. Subsequently, such a move could remove a big amount of Bitcoin from circulation for a substantial period.
It’s price noting that almost all of the US government’s Bitcoin holdings got here about through the seizures created from the dark web marketplace Silk Road, which Ross Ulbricht created. Interestingly, Trump again reaffirmed his promise to commute Ulbricht’s sentence if he’s elected.
Nonetheless, even when he eventually becomes a free man, it stays unlikely that Ulbricht will have the ability to recuperate the 50,591 BTC that was reportedly recovered from the hacker who stole Ulbricht and Silk Road in a previous hack. It is because the Silk Road founder forfeited claims to those funds in 2022 to offset the unpaid balance of his money judgment.
How Trump’s Candidacy Continues To Provide A Bullish Outlook For Crypto
Before the conference, Trump had already affirmed his support for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. This led to several predictions that Bitcoin could reach unprecedented heights if Trump wins the US presidential elections in November. For example, Standard Chartered predicted that Bitcoin could reach $150,000 by year-end if the previous President wins.
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A Trump victory can also be expected to usher in clearer and more favorable crypto regulations, which can undoubtedly positively impact crypto prices. That is most definitely to occur, seeing how the US Securities and Exchange’s (SEC) regulation by enforcement approach has left a sour taste on the crypto market. Interestingly, Trump promised to fireside the SEC chair, Gary Gensler, who has spearheaded this approach from the Commission up to now.
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