As the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville approaches, scheduled for July 25-27, the BTC community is preparing for what could be a watershed moment in Bitcoin’s history. The event is drawing unprecedented attention, likely to surpass Jack Mallers’ groundbreaking 2021 announcement that El Salvador would adopt Bitcoin as legal tender.
Anticipation for the conference has been greatly enhanced by the planned appearance of Donald Trump, a leading candidate for US president. Rumors that began circulating last week suggested that Trump might endorse bitcoin as a potential reserve asset if he wins the presidential election in November.
These speculations continued driven by Dennis Porter, founder of the regulatory advocacy group Satoshi Act Fund, who posted on social media platform X about an unconfirmed leak claiming that Trump plans to “announce the creation of a strategic bitcoin reserve in Nashville,” citing sources who wished to remain anonymous.
Bitcoin Could See a “$100,000 Trinity Candle”
Against this backdrop, Dan Ripoll, former CEO of financial services company Swan and now a professional trader, presented a bold concept scenario which could potentially more than double the price of Bitcoin immediately if Trump’s plans come to fruition. Speaking on X, Ripoll described the possibility as “one of the most gangster moves” Trump could make.
His hypothesis is that Trump will announce at the conference that he has invested significantly in Bitcoin and plans to integrate it into the US Strategic Reserve. “Go long BTC (i.e. thousands of coins) before the Bitcoin conference next week. Announce plans to put BTC into the US Strategic Reserve. BTC goes vertical with a $100,000 Trinity Candle. Trump quintuples his net worth overnight. He never sells,” Ripoll theorized.
According to him, such an action would not only enhance Trump’s net worth, but also benefit BTC holders if he keeps his promise. “Then he should keep his promise and start accumulating BTC once he takes office. Everybody wins. Gensler attacks Trump for market manipulation. Trump to Gensler: ‘You’re fired,'” Ripoll added.
Ripoll also suggested that the Democratic Party could potentially weaken Trump’s influence by taking a pro-Bitcoin stance before the election, though he expressed skepticism about their willingness to do so. Ripoll stated, “The Democrats could steal his thunder by coming out in favor of BTC before the election. But they won’t. The question is, how badly do the Democrats want to win this thing?”
BTC Community Reactions
Reactions from the Bitcoin community to this speculative scenario have been mixed. Eugene Gant has expressed skepticism about the broader implications of linking Bitcoin to potential political maneuvering, questioning the ethics of using one’s public position for personal financial gain via cryptocurrency. Ripoll has responded by emphasizing the broader benefits if America adopts Bitcoin as a reserve asset, suggesting that pegging the dollar to “hard money” could stabilize the currency and benefit Bitcoin holders.
Another community member, Steve, raised concerns that Trump’s history of promoting and then divesting from personal ventures could point to a similar strategy for Bitcoin—buying low, pumping up the price, then selling high. Ripoll responded by noting the common trajectory from skepticism to support in the Bitcoin community, suggesting that it wouldn’t be surprising if Trump truly changed his stance.
The expert concluded: “Everyone who is a bitcoin maximalist started out as a bitcoin skeptic. Every single one of us. It wouldn’t be surprising if they actually found out and changed their minds. That’s the way to go.”
The anticipation of Trump’s Bitcoin 2024 conference is clearly observable in BTC’s price action over the past few days. At the time of going to press, BTC was trading at $67,373, up over 24% over the past two weeks.
Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
