Inside the Craziest Moments from Bitcoin’s Largest Conference
Trump wins a standing ovation and announces a US Bitcoin Strategic Reserve
This weekend, tens of thousands of Bitcoiners descended on Nashville for the world’s largest Bitcoin conference — and it largely delivered. Bitcoin very nearly topped $70,000 in the aftermath as Trump announced a plan to never sell any of the $15 billion in Bitcoin the US currently holds and Sen. Cynthia Lummis laid out plans for the U.S. to buy another $68 billion.
Perhaps even more exciting, Democrats also pressured the Harris Campaign to consider changing the administration’s views on crypto, as her camp called for a “reset” with the industry.
You can watch us discuss all of that and more in our weekly news recap.
Trump Announces Plan for US Bitcoin Strategic Reserve
As we discussed ahead of the conference, rumors had already been swirling that Trump would announce his plans for a US Bitcoin Strategic Reserve. On Saturday, despite starting about an hour late, Trump finally announced exactly that in a robust crypto platform that included his plan “to ensure the United States will be the crypto capital of the planet and the Bitcoin superpower of the world.”
He received a standing ovation for threatening to fire SEC Chair Gary Gensler on Day 1 (which largely would be expected with a new administration) and for promising to end the weaponization of the agency against the crypto industry.
On top of all that, Trump promised to never have the U.S. sell any of the roughly $15 billion in BTC it currently holds, which was mostly acquired via Department of Justice seizures, and said it would seed the creation of a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile."
As Fundstrat's Head of Digital Asset Strategy Sean Farrell predicts, delivering on plans to not sell any of the country's existing holdings would be supportive of bitcoin's price. (Farrell has a $125,000 price target for year-end.)
Sen. Lummis Announces Plan for US to Buy $68 Billion in Bitcoin
Less likelier, though still exciting to consider, were plans from the self-described “Bitcoin Senator” Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY.) After Trump spoke, she read from language of her freshly proposed bill that would have the U.S. add to that stockpile with $68 billion in bitcoin over the course of five years.
It’s unclear how likely a bill like that might be to win approval in Congress. At the very least, it is more signal that Republicans are indeed leaning into being the pro-crypto party. If you weren’t already convinced they are really into it — here’s Sen. Tim Scott going ham on stage.
Democrats Re-group on Crypto
It wasn’t all Republicans onstage in Nashville. Democratic Congressmen Ro Khanna and Wiley Nickel were also present to represent their party and views. In fact, Rep. Nickel went so far as to warn Bitcoiners that Trump was just using them — before he received hearty boos.
But, it does seem like there is light at the end of that tunnel. Over the weekend, House Democrats sent a letter to VP Kamala Harris urging the administration to switch up its anti-crypto policies. The Financial Times also reported that Harris is seeking a “reset” with the industry. (Rep. Wiley Nickel will join Coinage on Friday. Subscribe to our YouTube and turn on alerts to not miss that one.)
BlackRock Reveals Timeline for Next Big Wall St. Purchases
Even if the next big chapter for Bitcoin adoption isn’t the U.S. government buying $68 billion in the crypto, there are reasons to be optimistic Wall Street really is just getting started.
Bloomberg’s James Seyffart asked BlackRock’s Robbie Mitchnick when the major wirehouses, with trillions in capital, might start allocating to Bitcoin and the answer was surprising.
"Certainly this year is likely,” he said. That could mean UBS, Merril Lynch, or Morgan Stanley could be scooping up billions by the fourth quarter.
Edward Snowden Speaks, Stablecoin Wars Turn Ugly
As is usual, the Bitcoin Conference rolled out their favorite government whistleblower in Edward Snowden. He delivered the usual talking points about government surveillance and why decentralized and permissionless money is crucial to freedom.
Those points were somewhat oddly refuted by the billionaire CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald who angrily defended Tether during his time on stage. In response to some claiming Tether’s stablecoin (USDT) had been used by terrorists, Howard Lutnick responded by celebrating the fact that Tether works closely with law enforcement agencies to seize assets when necessary — a point that seemed strange to shout at a Bitcoin Conference.
Lutnick also dunked on Circle and their competing stablecoin USDC for almost losing $3 billion in reserves by holding their funds at Silicon Valley Bank when it failed last year.
All in all, the Conference in Nashville delivered on all the rumors that had been swirling in advance, which isn’t always the case for an industry built in large part on FOMO. However, Bitcoin had largely shed all the pre-Conference rally on Monday – falling from $70,000 to under $67,000.
Traders will be watching Wednesday’s Fed statement and press conference closely for any clues of the next rate cut from Chair Jay Powell and company.
Other Web3 Headlines:
29-year-old Bitcoiner robbed and murdered in Kyiv for $200,000 in bitcoin
State of Michigan Retirement System discloses $6.6 million in Bitcoin ETF holding
Hong Kong lawmaker follows Trump in proposing Bitcoin reserve
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Nothing gives me more confidence in BTC than the involvement of Merrill Lynch. What’s next? Treasury notes denominated in … tulips?