Sein Lee, 10th Grade

Following the re-election of former US President Donald Trump, the US Congress landscape is also changing in favor of cryptocurrencies, and the industry is increasingly expecting a ‘cryptocurrency renaissance’ and a ‘cryptocurrency golden age,’ as the price of ‘leading stock’ Bitcoin has surpassed $80,000 for the first time ever.

According to the Financial Times (FT) and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 10th, President-elect Trump once criticized the cryptocurrency industry as a “fraud,” but has shown a friendly attitude toward cryptocurrencies in the past year or two. During his presidential campaign, he promised that if he is re-elected, he would ease the Biden administration’s cryptocurrency regulations. He also made statements such as “I will make the United States the capital of virtual assets” and “I will stockpile Bitcoin as a strategic asset,” and pledged to become a “pro-Bitcoin president” and a “virtual currency president” who actively fosters the virtual currency industry.

In particular, President-elect Trump’s announcement on his first day in office that he would dismiss Gary Gensler, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), who had been at the forefront of cryptocurrency regulation, was received as a great windfall for the virtual currency industry. There is also talk of the possibility that the authority in charge of virtual currency will change from the SEC to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

There are also pro-cryptocurrency figures within the Trump camp. Vice President-elect J.D. Vance holds cryptocurrency, and Howard Rutnick, co-chairman of the Trump administration’s transition team, also leads an investment firm in which cryptocurrency company Tether holds shares. President-elect Trump’s second son, Eric Trump, also shared a composite photo of a Bitcoin flag fluttering above the White House via X after the election.

The cryptocurrency industry, which has been regulated under the Democratic Joe Biden administration, has been trying to change the atmosphere of Washington politics regarding cryptocurrencies for about a year through this presidential election and the federal House and Senate elections. In particular, it has poured astronomical amounts of money into changing the US Congressional landscape.

Cryptocurrency companies including Coinbase provided $170 million to Fair Shake, a Independent expenditure-only political action committees (super PAC) targeting politicians critical of cryptocurrencies, a year ago. The group spent $135 million during this election period and led to the defeat of candidates such as Senator Sered Brown (D), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, who is critical of cryptocurrencies. According to the Associated Press, at least 54 of the 58 candidates supported by cryptocurrency-friendly super PACs have been elected, and the lobbying group StandwithCrypto now reports that there are 284 cryptocurrency-friendly politicians and 132 cryptocurrency-critical politicians in the US Congress.

In an interview with the Financial Times (FT), Richard Teng, CEO of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, said that expectations are growing that Trump’s election will be a turning point for cryptocurrency acceptance in the US, and that this is the beginning of a golden age. He also evaluated it as a “big win for the cryptocurrency industry” and predicted that there will be a change in the attitude of regulatory authorities in the future. Brian Armstrong, CEO of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, raised his voice, saying, “Being an opponent of cryptocurrency is just bad politics”, and Mike Novogratz of cryptocurrency operator Galaxy said, “This is the beginning of a series of good news that will come out every week for the next 52 weeks.”

“As cryptocurrencies emerge as a powerful political force, it will be important to prevent unfair practices from occurring in the industry,” said Christine Smith of the Blockchain Association.

References:

Business Korea. Bitcoin surpasses $80,000 for the first time. Business Korea.
https://www.businesskorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=229067

Financial Times.Bitcoin and cryptocurrency developments under Trump. Financial Times.
https://www.ft.com/content/17231484-394d-4e5d-965a-3d24b01f8a1e

The Wall Street Journal. Crypto plan creates potential conflicts for Trump. The Wall Street Journal.
https://www.wsj.com/finance/currencies/crypto-plan-creates-potential-conflicts-for-trump-92515c18

Associated Press. Bitcoin, crypto, and the Trump election. AP News.
https://apnews.com/article/bitcoin-crypto-donald-trump-election-c2e2a1a895288c5e9c0df2721012a5bb

Binance. Richard Teng talks crypto industry trends on Raoul Pal’s YouTube show. Binance Blog. https://www.binance.com/en/blog/leadership/richard-teng-talks-crypto-industry-trends-and-components-of-binances-success-on-raoul-pals-youtube-show-3605267223029976170