President-elect Donald Trump being pro-crypto may be fraught with consequences, Paul Goncharoff, veteran financial analyst and general director of consulting firm Goncharoff LCC, warned in an interview with Sputnik.
He argued that "there will come a point when he [Trump] is actually in office when the idea of a competing uncontrolled cryptocurrency to the USD might not be politically advantageous, and even be viewed as a danger to the USD."
"The beauty and grace of BTC, ETH, and most all other cryptocurrencies is that they are not under the direct control of any particular government, and that tends to be seen as threatening. After all, if you don't control it - how do you tax it?" the analyst pointed out.
He suggested that the new Trump administration will allow "greater leeway" to such cryptocurrencies as ETH, BTC, ADA, and SUI, something that Goncharoff said "can be seen in the surging waves of price increases pretty much across the board."
When asked whether Bitcoin could become a political instrument under Trump's rule, the analyst claimed that "it would take a herculean effort to do that with BTC, ETH, and similar, and I'd say it is unlikely." At the same time, he concluded by noting that "anything under the sun can potentially be politicized, or weaponized as has been popular lately."
Trump's Bitcoin-Related Pledges During Election Race
Vowing to make the US the "crypto capital of the planet" if elected, Trump also pledged:
to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve in the US. Goncharoff told Sputnik in this regard that "there may be some wisdom in the US Treasury stockpiling BTC even if it just pays the ever-growing interest on USD debt."
to ensure that the federal government would never sell its Bitcoin holdings;
to establish a "Bitcoin and crypto presidential advisory council";
to support the US Bitcoin mining industry so that the cryptocurrency could "be mined, minted and made in the USA";
to fire Securities and Exchange Commissioner Gary Gensler, who led over 100 regulatory actions against crypto during his tenure;
to lower interest rates, which would mean a surge in crypto prices;
to remove capital gains tax on Bitcoin transactions;
and last but not least, to protect Americans' right to hold cryptocurrency on their own.