Donald Trump won a landslide victory in the US presidential election and will take office in January. He supported cryptocurrency during his campaign and now has the authority to enact more friendly policies.
Trump will focus on preventing federal regulators and legislators from taking anti-cryptocurrency actions and will develop a comprehensive new legal framework for the industry.
Donald Trump's comprehensive victory
In a surprising turnaround, Donald Trump significantly exceeded expectations in last night's US presidential election, ending the campaign with a confident victory. Pre-election polls indicated a neck-and-neck race; however, Trump made significant strides across almost the entire map. He made supporting cryptocurrency a key pillar of his campaign, and now the industry must assess the benefits of his victory.
Trump's performance in the 2020 campaign. Source: The New York Times
President Trump made numerous campaign promises supporting cryptocurrency, particularly Bitcoin. For example, he vowed to establish a Bitcoin reserve and prevent the US government from selling its held crypto assets.
However, he also condemned the practice of supporting an official 'digital dollar' CBDC. In other words, he seems to be more focused on existing crypto assets.
In addition, his promises extend to the entire industry. In August, he vowed to make the US the "crypto capital" and promised to enact a series of more friendly regulations. The core of this new strategy is his commitment at the Nashville Bitcoin Conference to fire SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. This promise received enthusiastic applause, and he seems likely to follow through on it.
"I had no idea he was this unpopular! I had no idea he was this unpopular. Let me say it again: on day one, I will fire Gary Gensler!" Trump claimed in response to the audience's excessive praise in July.
A new legal paradigm for cryptocurrency
Once Gensler is out, Trump plans to implement a series of beneficial cryptocurrency policies. First, he promises to stop the SEC and other regulatory bodies from continuing to crackdown on exchanges and other businesses. Several opponents of cryptocurrency also lost in the election, which will help to weaken the momentum of hostile legislation.
As a final symbol of ending hostility towards cryptocurrency, Donald Trump also promised to release Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. This non-violent offender and early Bitcoin adopter has spent a decade in prison and has become a celebrity in the community. If Ulbricht is released under Trump's authorization, it will be an important milestone in government reconciliation.
But importantly, Trump vowed to have a positive impact on the industry, rather than just reversing negative effects. Policy advisors are developing a list of executive actions he could take upon taking office and crafting a comprehensive new regulatory strategy. Trump is also exploring more innovative use cases, such as the role of cryptocurrency in alleviating national debt.
Overall, Trump promised a multitude of potential benefits during the campaign. If at least half of these promises are fulfilled, it could permanently change the industry's volatile relationship with the federal government.
"The Republican Party is committed to establishing clear cryptocurrency regulations and designating Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset, which will be a game changer for industry growth. Just like the space race or recent Bitcoin mining developments, we have always believed that when the US takes action on cryptocurrency adoption, it will do so in an unstoppable manner and eventually dominate globally. Now, we are about to see this shift occur, making the prospect of widespread cryptocurrency adoption in the US more certain than ever." CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti told BeInCrypto.
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