Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump waves as he boards a plane at Harry Reid International Airport after a campaign trip, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump waves as he boards a plane at Harry Reid International Airport after a campaign trip, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump launched his family's cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, with an interview on the X social media platform in which he also gave his first public comments on the apparent assassination attempt against him a day earlier.
Trump did not discuss specifics about World Liberty Financial on Monday or how it would work, pivoting from questions about cryptocurrency to talking about artificial intelligence or other topics. Instead, he recounted his experience Sunday, saying he and a friend playing golf 鈥渉eard shots being fired in the air, and I guess probably four or five.鈥
鈥淚 would have loved to have sank that last putt,鈥 Trump said. He credited the Secret Service agent who spotted the barrel of a rifle and began firing toward it as well as law enforcement and a civilian who he said helped track down the suspect.
World Liberty Financial is expected to be a borrowing and lending service used to trade cryptocurrencies, which are forms of digital money that can be traded over the internet without relying on the global banking system. Exchanges often charge fees for withdrawals of Bitcoin and other currencies.
Other speakers after Trump, including his eldest son, Don Jr., talked about embracing cryptocurrency as an alternative to what they allege is a banking system tilted against conservatives.
Experts have said a presidential candidate launching a business venture in the midst of a campaign conflicts.
鈥淭aking a pro-crypto stance is not necessarily troubling; the troubling aspect is doing it while starting a way to personally benefit from it,鈥 Jordan Libowitz, a spokesperson for the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said earlier this month.
During his time in the White House, Trump said he was 鈥渘ot a fan鈥 of cryptocurrency and tweeted in 2019, 鈥淯nregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity." However, during this election cycle, he has reversed himself and taken on a favorable view of cryptocurrencies.
He that his campaign would begin accepting donations in cryptocurrency as part of an effort to build what it calls a 鈥渃rypto army鈥 leading up to Election Day. He this year, promising to make the U.S. the 鈥渃rypto capital of the planet鈥 and create a bitcoin 鈥渟trategic reserve鈥 using the currency that the government currently holds.
Hilary Allen, a law professor at American University who has done research on cryptocurrencies, said she was skeptical of Trump's change of heart on crypto.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 fair to say that that reversal has been motivated in part by financial interests,鈥 she said.
Crypto enthusiasts welcomed the shift, viewing the launch as a positive sign for investors if Trump retakes the White House.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris鈥 campaign has not offered policy proposals on how it would regulate digital assets like cryptocurrencies.
In an effort to appeal to crypto investors, a group of Democrats, including Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, participated in an online 鈥淐rypto 4 Harris鈥 event in August.
Neither Harris nor members of her campaign staff attended the event.
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Gomez Licon contributed from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
