On January 7, PANews reported, according to Cointelegraph, that Canadian Prime Minister hopeful Pierre Poilievre has promised to make Canada the "cryptocurrency capital." According to a video circulating online recently, during a campaign event in March 2022, Poilievre used Bitcoin to buy a shawarma and promised a plan to "make Canada the world capital of blockchain and cryptocurrency." In his speech at the event, he criticized the central banking system and Canada's cryptocurrency regulations. He also stated that Bitcoin could help Canadians "escape" inflation — after the cryptocurrency market significantly declined in 2023, he faced attacks from Liberal advertisements by the end of the same year.
Poilievre has also made other statements supporting cryptocurrency, including a post released in 2022, promising that "buyers and sellers have the right to freely choose Bitcoin and other technologies." He also stated that the Bank of Canada "lacks knowledge in finance" and vowed to prevent the central bank from issuing a "dangerous central bank digital currency." Recently, in April 2024, he posted on social media supporting a bill that would ban central bank digital currencies and protect the use of cash.
According to a CBC News poll, Poilievre has led the Conservative Party since 2022, and as of January 6, the party led the ruling Liberal Party by 24 points, with a 98% chance of winning a majority. Earlier today, news indicated that prediction markets show pro-crypto Pierre Poilievre is likely to become Canada's next Prime Minister.
