Donald Trump, who once called bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) a scam and cryptocurrencies a "disaster waiting to happen," is set to show his support for the industry this weekend in Nashville, Tennessee. The Republican presidential nominee will deliver a keynote address at the Bitcoin 2024 convention on Saturday, a three-day event that's touted as the world's largest BTC conference. Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance have been courting votes and donations with the promise of lighter crypto regulation, as opposed to the Biden administration's crackdown that has upset the industry. Trump is the first major presidential candidate to accept crypto donations. He raised over $4M through crypto donations, a campaign aide told CNBC . The donations have been in the form of bitcoin ( BTC-USD ), ether ( ETH-USD ), Ripple's XRP ( XRP-USD ), stablecoin USDC ( USDC-USD ) and various memecoins. Notable crypto advocates who donated include the Winklevoss twins; Mike Belshe, CEO of digital asset security firm BitGo; Jesse Powell, founder of crypto exchange Kraken; and Ripple's legal chief Stuart Alderoty. Crypto sentiment has been improving this month, especially after the assassination attempt on Trump that raised his odds of winning the election and drove the so-called 'Trump Trade.' A Trump presidency would be great for bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) as his administration would likely adopt more favorable policies, according to Jon de Wet, CIO at digital asset firm ZeroCap. Dear readers: We recognize that politics often intersects with the financial news of the day, so we invite you to click here to join the separate political discussion . More on Trump Trade Bitcoin now higher after Biden announcement dip; stock futures eyed Trumponomics: Trump details plan for economy, Wall Street and foreign policy Trump Trade: Top 5 Stocks If Trump Wins The Election (SA Quant)
