- Crypto was not mentioned or discussed during the conversation between Trump and Musk
- The interview was postponed after Musk claimed that X was the target of a DDoS attack – an edge, however report quoted an internal source as claiming Tesla CEO “99% lied”
Elon Musk has long been a very vocal proponent of cryptocurrencies. Lately, however, he has not been alone, with Donald Trump also fully supporting the asset class. This is extraordinary, not only because Trump is a former US president running for a second term, but also because his latest views on cryptos are a complete pivot from the views he had while in the White House.
At the time, he called the asset class a “scam,” “not real money” and a “disaster waiting to happen.” On the contrary, he is now the first US presidential candidate to accept crypto donations, while also giving a mainstream platform to Bitcoin mining. In fact, he also gave a keynote speech at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville last month.
This is why many in the crypto community expected Trump to say something about the asset class during his interview session with Tesla’s Elon Musk at X Spaces. However, that was not to be.
The former president said nothing about cryptocurrencies. Not one word. Instead, the interview was an extended discussion about the usual talking points such as immigration, the economy, AI and his rival – Vice President Kamala Harris.
Is this bad news for crypto?
What does this mean though? Well, not much. For Donald Trump, cryptocurrencies are just a means to an end – the presidency. He understands that many crypto holders are single-issue voters right now, many of whom are unhappy with the Biden administration’s almost hostile stance against the crypto space.
While Trump may still be personally uninvolved or clueless (which is not exactly a stretch) about crypto, he understands the value of crypto holders and the monetary power they can bring. This is why Trump’s campaign has used the community’s skepticism toward Biden to its advantage.
That’s why crypto execs are meeting the former president at his Mar-a-Lago estate, while also pledging to raise more than $100 million for his campaign.
The fact that the former president did not talk about crypto during his interview with Musk means nothing. While he probably still realizes how valuable the crypto community’s support is, cryptos aren’t exactly a decisive electoral issue yet. That’s why it wasn’t worth discussing in an interview that was also addressed to millions of other voters.
Still, it’s worth pointing out that there were people betting on the possibility of crypto getting a mention during the Musk-Trump interview. In fact, according to Polymarket, bettors gave this opportunity a +65% chance, also betting over $800,000.
Needless to say, it didn’t quite work out for these guys.