U.S. President Donald Trump has recently criticized bitcoin and Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra in a series of tweets. The cryptocurrency community thanked him for the free publicity.
Via the microblogging platform, Trump wrote he isn’t a fan of bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in general, and doesn’t see them as money. The U.S. President claimed the value of cryptocurrencies is “highly volatile and based on thin air.”
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
Trump then tweeted about Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency, and claimed it’ll have “little standing or dependability.” He added that if Facebook or other companies are looking to “become a bank,” they’ll have to get a Banking Charter and “become subject to all Banking Regulations, just like other Banks.”
Finally, he tweeted out that the only real currency in the United States is the U.S. dollar, and that it’s currently “by far the most dominant currency anywhere in the World.”
…and International. We have only one real currency in the USA, and it is stronger than ever, both dependable and reliable. It is by far the most dominant currency anywhere in the World, and it will always stay that way. It is called the United States Dollar!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019
The U.S. President’s comments come shortly after the head of the U.S. central bank, Jeremy Powell, claimed bitcoin is a “speculative store of value like gold.” Powell told lawmakers that Facebook’s plan to launch a cryptocurrency can’t move forward, unless it addresses several concerns related to money laundering, financial stability, and privacy.
Powell further added that the Federal Reserve established a working group to follow the project, and that it is coordinating with the central banks of other governments. Similarly Bank of England governor Mark Carney recently weighed in on Facebook’s Libra, claiming it must be meticulous from the very start.
Cryptocurrency Community Applauds Free Publicity
Despite Trump’s negative views on bitcoin and the cryptocurrency space in general, the cryptocurrency community applauded his tweet over the free publicity it gave BTC. The U.S. President’s tweets seemingly had no negative effect on BTC’s price.
On Twitter, many pointed out that Trump has over 60 million followers, and that through his tweets he put bitcoin and the cryptocurrency ecosystem in front of potentially thousands of new users who’ll look into what cryptocurrency is.
62 million people just saw the word “bitcoin” on their feed. Many of them for the first time.
— Dizzy (@dizzytwirl) July 12, 2019
Some prominent members of the cryptocurrency community also replied to Trump trying to show the President some of the advantages cryptocurrencies bring to the table. Kraken CEO Jesse Powell pleaded with him not to let the U.S: fall behind on it.
If you study crypto, you will find much to agree with. Crypto is about personal responsibility and choice. It is about free markets and competition. It is about mathematical, verifiable, perfectly enforceable regulation. Crypto is to commerce what Twitter is to speech: democracy.
— Jesse Powell (@jespow) July 12, 2019
The Winklevoss twins’ cryptocurrency exchange Geminin tweeted a quote from Tyler Winklevoss.
“We have elected to put our money and faith in a mathematical framework that is free of politics and human error.” – @tylerwinklevoss
— Gemini (@Gemini) July 12, 2019
At press time, one bitcoin is trading at $11,600 after rising 1.3% in the last 24-hour period. In the last six months, the flagship cryptocurrency’s price rose over 200%.
Featured image by Gage Skidmore | Flickr | CC by 2.0
