Bitcoin volatile after Trump says US will be ‘crypto capital of the planet’

Bitcoin rose after Donald Trump voiced support for the currency during a weekend conference.

During remarks a weekend bitcoin conference, presidential hopeful Donald Trump pledged to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet, and the bitcoin superpower of the world” if elected in November.

By Monday morning, Bitcoin climbed as much as 2.9%, reaching
$69,998.26, its highest level since mid-June. The crypto erased gains around 11 a.m. Eastern and was trading about 1% lower as of 4:10 p.m.

The crypto has rallied in recent months, up about 60% year-to-date at earlier highs amid a flurry of spot-bitcoin ETF approvals from the SEC.

During his remarks in Nashville on Saturday, Trump named a number of ways he’d support the crypto industry, including getting rid of SEC Chair Gary Gensler and ordering the government to keep all tokens confiscated in criminal cases to form a “strategic national bitcoin stockpile.”

Trump’s comments break from much of his prior sentiment on crypto. During his term, Trump often spoke out against the currency on Twitter, which independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was quick to point out during his own remarks.

Kennedy, a staunch crypto supporter, said Trump’s policies while in office capped the currency’s growth and reminded the audience that Trump once called Bitcoin “a scam against the dollar.”

Kennedy also called out the former president for failing to pardon Ross Ulbricht, who is serving life in prison for running the online marketplace Silk Road, where users bought illegal drugs using Bitcoin and other online currencies. Trump said he would commute Ulbricht’s sentence if elected.

Trump also announced that he’s raised $25 million from cryptocurrency donations in the last two months. He’s also won support from leading crypto investors like Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who donated $250,000 to a pro-Trump super PAC earlier this month.

Trump’s comments follow his party’s recent growing support for crypto. The GOP’s official 2024 platform, released earlier this month, says, “We will defend the right to mine bitcoin, and ensure every American has the right to self-custody of their Digital Assets, and transact free from Government Surveillance and Control.”