Bitcoin prices are rising as former President Trump seemingly gets involved with the crypto industry.
Bryan Courchesne, CEO and founder of Daim, on CNBC’s Fast Money mentioned the possibility of the U.S. government will holding Bitcoin as a reserve asset.
Trump converted to Bitcoin?
About a month ago, Trump met with Bitcoin miners and learned about blockchain and transaction verification, and now Courchesne believes Trump will discuss easing crypto regulations in his upcoming speech.
The common view today in the crypto industry is many obstacles in the space have come from SEC Chair Gary Gensler, from his incompetence.
Courchesne expects Trump to support innovation and speak positively about Bitcoin at the Nashville conference next week.
There is no official announcement yet, of course, but majority of the industry players think this is very, very likely.
Reserve asset for the USA
When asked if Trump’s support for crypto might lead to the U.S. holding Bitcoin as a reserve asset, Courchesne noted there are lots of rumors and discussions about it on social media, so it wouldn’t be a good idea to reject the possibility.
He explained that the Justice Department already holds about 200,000 Bitcoin, from criminal seizures, making the U.S. one of the largest Bitcoin holder.
Moving this Bitcoin to the Department of Treasury could add $13 billion to the balance sheet.
$13 billion might not sounds a lot, but this amount can’t be diluted like the USD. This shift from a random seller to a long-term holder could benefit the market by pushing prices up.
Trump and Bitcoin mining
Courchesne also talked about Trump’s support for Bitcoin mining, because miners moves to places with the cheapest energy, like Texas, New York, and Wyoming.
In a business-friendly environment, if Trump can lower energy costs for miners, they can hold more Bitcoin on their balance sheets.
This would reduce the supply available on exchanges and potentially also increase Bitcoin prices.
