Former President Donald Trump might be headed to Nashville to speak at Bitcoin 2024 later in July, according to a report from Axios.
Trump is in talks to speak at the event, according to Axios, which cited two people familiar with the matter on Monday. Other politicians will also speak at Bitcoin 2024, including presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former candidate for president Vivek Ramaswamy and Republican Sens. Bill Hagerty and Marsha Blackburn.
A source close to the situation told The Block that Trump was invited to the conference, but could not confirm if the former president will speak or attend.
Crypto is “under attack,” said Brian Hughes, Trump's senior advisor, in a statement emailed to The Block.
“Crypto innovators and others in the technology sector are under attack from Biden and Democrats,” Hughes said. “While Biden stifles innovation with more regulation and higher taxes, President Trump is ready to encourage American leadership in this and other emerging technologies.”
The presumptive GOP presidential nominee has ratcheted up support for crypto over the past few months ahead of the November election. He told participants at an event at Mar-a-Lago earlier this month that he would advocate for bitcoin mining in the White House, saying miners contribute to energy grid stability. He also said he would accept political donations in the form of crypto and said he would stop “Joe Biden's crusade to crush crypto.”
President Joe Biden's re-election campaign, meanwhile, has been reaching out to members of the crypto industry for guidance on digital asset policies, according to reporting from The Block. That marks a significant shift from the Biden administration's less-than-favorable stance on crypto.
Both men will take on the debate stage on Thursday, which CNN is hosting. Advocacy group Stand with Crypto posted a form last week petitioning people to fill out a form asking CNN to ask the candidates their position on crypto, citing crypto legislation that passed out of the U.S. House in May. The Republican-led bill, dubbed FIT 21, aims to regulate the crypto industry and garnered support from 71 Democrats, including former Speaker of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California.