Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at the Waukesha Expo Center in Waukesha, Wisconsin, U.S., on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.
Daniel Steinle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Trump campaign announced Tuesday that it would begin accepting cryptocurrency donations, calling the move a sign of solidarity with opponents of “socialist government control” of U.S. financial markets.
Supporters of former President Donald Trump can donate using “any cryptocurrency accepted through the Coinbase commerce product,” his campaign said in a press release.
The announcement pairs President Joe Biden, who is running against Trump for re-election, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a vocal crypto critic who is pushing to crack down on the emerging industry.
“Biden’s deputy, Elizabeth Warren, said in an attack on cryptocurrency that she is building an ‘anti-crypto army’ to restrict Americans’ right to make their own financial decisions,” the campaign said, referring to to a re-election ad Warren posted on X in March 2023.
“MAGA supporters, now with a new cryptocurrency option, will build a crypto army to lead the campaign to victory on November 5th!” the campaign said.
The move opens a new potential source of funding for the Trump campaign, which still trails Biden in coffers even as he overtook the Democratic incumbent in April.
Crypto donations are recorded as in-kind donations, similar to stock donations. The campaign can then decide to either abolish the digital currency or stick with it.
“Contribution limits and disclosure requirements for crypto donations are governed by Federal Election Commission regulations,” the Trump campaign said.
The embrace of crypto is just the latest in a series of Trump’s efforts to woo the crypto community, which tends to be younger and more male, according to an April 2023 Pew Research Center survey.
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In December, Trump sold a limited edition of NFT trading cards that could be purchased with cryptocurrency, for example.
Earlier this month, he hosted a luxurious dinner for his NFT supporters at the Mar-a-Lago club.
There, Trump told crypto advocates that they had better “vote for him” because the Biden administration was “against” crypto, Politico reported.
Biden’s campaign, meanwhile, reflects his administration’s skepticism toward cryptocurrencies and their leaders.
Hours before the Trump campaign began pursuing crypto donors, Biden’s team sent out a fundraising text warning his supporters that “cryptocurrency executives and oil barons are doing everything for Trump.”
The Biden campaign did not immediately respond when CNBC asked for its opinion on accepting crypto donations.
The Trump campaign’s announcement on Tuesday called Trump the “first major party candidate” to accept crypto donations. But Trump won’t be the official nominee until July.
And he is not the first presidential candidate to accept cryptocurrency donations.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is seeking a long-term independent presidential bid, announced in May 2023 that his campaign would accept Bitcoin donations. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., accepted Bitcoin donations for his own presidential campaign in 2015.
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2024-05-22 00:40:31
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