'Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death!' 🤌
Donald Trump has unleashed himself on the politicised crypto landscape. Are US politicians exploiting crypto for votes and funding? FTX paid $25M to whistleblowers. Key events in crypto this week.
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The turn of events this year has politicised crypto.
In ways one would have not imagined, but here we are.
Politicians picking sides.
The right goes pro crypto.
The left stands firm on against.
And Trump? He's quoting Patrick Henry - "Give me liberty or give me death!"
Donald Trump gearing up for a 2024 rematch with President Joe Biden, had a clear message for the crypto industry over the weekend.
Trump, who has recently started accepting crypto campaign donations and made millions selling crypto-themed digital trading cards, warned that Biden is trying to kill the US crypto industry.
Ahead of his appearance at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington, He said this on Truth Social.
"I am very positive and open-minded to cryptocurrency companies, and all things related to this new and burgeoning industry. Our country must be the leader in the field; there is no second place. Crooked Joe Biden, on the other hand, the worst president in the history of our country, wants it to die a slow and painful death. That will never happen with me."
Then, we went ahead and made more headlines at the convention.
The Ulbricht redemption
Trump also had a surprise up his sleeve, promising to commute Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht’s life sentence to time served if he's re-elected.
"If you vote for me, on Day 1, I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht to a sentence of time served. He’s already served 11 years, we’re gonna get him home."
This pledge, made during a speech that was initially met with boos, later drew enthusiastic cheers from the crowd when Trump mentioned freeing Ulbricht.
Ulbricht was sentenced to two life sentences plus 40 years in 2015 for creating and operating Silk Road, the dark web marketplace that popularised bitcoin payments.
Shifting political winds
The political landscape for crypto in Washington has been evolving.
Last week, despite strong opposition from some quarters, the second-largest cryptocurrency, Ethereum, secured a fully-fledged Wall Street spot exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Read: Ethereum ETFs Day 🎉
This development opens up the crypto market to a new cohort of investors.
Shark Tank billionaire Mark Cuban, an outspoken Biden supporter, recently warned that Trump could win the 2024 election due to Biden's stance on crypto.
Over 20% of voters in several key swing states view cryptocurrency as a critical issue in the upcoming US elections.
This has become one of the most important aspects of the 2024 elections.
The crypto community has shown a slight preference for Trump over Biden, perhaps reflecting Trump's anti-regulatory stance which resonates with many in the space.
And it’s not just talk; Trump is actively engaging with the crypto community. People who bought his "Mugshot" NFTs even had a chance to dine with him at Mar-a-Lago.
At a May 9 gathering at Mar-a-Lago, Trump took to the podium and declared:"If you’re in favour of crypto, you’d better vote for Trump."
But, do voters care about crypto? Here’s what a March survey reveals: 69% of Americans are dissatisfied with the traditional financial system, leading many to view crypto as a better option.
But another survey shows: 60% of US crypto investors don't fully grasp the underlying technology, blockchain. 35% of crypto investors themselves admitted they're not confident in their crypto knowledge.
Crypto politicised - the right way to go about elections?
Could politicians could be exploiting the allure of crypto for votes and funding, rather than genuinely supporting the technology.
Molly Jane Zuckerman and Jeff Albus in an Op-Ed on Blockworks.
“I want to be clear — I do not care if you vote Republican, Democrat, or third-party, as long as you care about the issues at stake, and truly believe that the candidate in question is representative of your views. But voting for a candidate you would not otherwise support, simply because they favour the deregulation of a sector in which you hold a profit motive, is a compromise that you should not make.”
Read: Only a fool would vote on crypto alone
on why is it not surprising that Crypto is being politicised.
People have been voting for their wallets for decades.
This is not new.
The current president has the lowest approval rating in American history.
A big part of that is because majority of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck and inflation is more than 50% higher than the central bank’s target of 2% annually.
There are many topics and positions to consider when voting for a candidate, but if you can’t afford to live a relatively normal lifestyle in America then people are going to seek out ways to change leadership.
Bitcoin and crypto are presented as new things.
They are from a technology standpoint.
But the idea that people are suddenly going to use different criteria to vote doesn’t make any sense to me.
Citizens vote for who will put them in a better economic position.
Block That Quote 🎙️
Donald Trump draws the battle lines.
"I will ensure that the future of crypto and the future of bitcoin will be made in the USA, not driven overseas.”
Reinforcing his commitment to the crypto community.
“I will support the right to self custody. To the nation’s fifty million crypto holders, I say this: I will keep Elizabeth Warren and her goons away from your bitcoin, and I will never allow the creation of a central bank digital currency (CBDC)."
Trump's "crypto army" is poised to do battle with what he sees as an "anti-crypto army" led by influential Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Crypto This Week: Decisions and Launches
Look ahead to the key events this week.
Biden faces crypto custody rule decision: US President Joe Biden is expected to decide on a resolution overturning the SEC's crypto custody rules. His options: Veto the resolution, sign it to nullify the rules, or let the deadline pass for it to become law without his signature.
FTX executive faces sentencing: Ryan Salame, a high-ranking figure in Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto empire, will be sentenced tomorrow. Prosecutors are seeking a prison term of 5-7 years, following SBF's 25-year sentence in March for fraud and conspiracy charges.
UK launches first crypto ETFs: The United Kingdom will see the launch of its first crypto exchange-traded products tomorrow, following approval last week. This move follows similar launches in New York and Hong Kong.
Trump trial jury deliberations begin: The jury in Donald Trump's "hush money" trial is expected to begin deliberations on Wednesday.
RFK Jr. speaks at Consensus conference: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a presidential candidate advocating for cryptocurrency, will speak at Coindesk's Consensus conference in Austin, Texas, on Thursday.
In the Numbers 🔢
$25 million
That’s how much FTX paid to silence whistleblowers before the collapse.
What did the whistleblowers allege?
Market manipulation
Insider trading
Misuse of customer funds
Flouting regulations and anti-money laundering measures
Who was investigating? Robert Cleary, an independent examiner appointed by the bankruptcy court, reviewed the whistleblower complaints and other investigations.
Settlements were made with at least 7 whistleblowers.
An FTX.US executive who raised concerns about misleading investors and a lack of proper structure (settlement > $16 million)
A new FTX.US employee who suspected market manipulation and insider trading ($1.8 million)
An Alameda Research attorney who flagged regulatory and governance issues ($2 million)
An employee hired for anti-money laundering compliance who believed FTX.US had insufficient controls ($settlement amount not specified)
Former FTX.US CEO Brett Harrison addressed this.
The Surfer 🏄
Binance, Coinbase, and OKX are leading a hiring spree in the crypto industry, with over 1,200 job openings among the top ten exchanges. The hiring surge comes after two years of job cuts in the industry, with 13,500 crypto workers losing their jobs since April 2022.
Shan Hanes, the former CEO of Heartland Tri-State Bank in Elkhart, Kansas, has pleaded guilty to embezzling $47.1 million from the bank and using the funds for cryptocurrency purchases. This ultimately led to the bank's collapse.
Argentina aims to learn from El Salvador's success in adopting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The National Securities Commission of Argentina held a meeting with El Salvador's National Commission of Digital Assets to discuss crypto adoption and regulation.
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