The Breakdown First Five - Monday, July 29, 2024

Welcome back to The Breakdown First Five — the 5 most interesting and/or important stories in bitcoin, crypto, and markets to start your day.

5. RFK’s Bitcoin Credentials

The most political Bitcoin conference ever kicked off with RFK Jr laying out his vision of the US as a Bitcoin hegemon. If elected, he said he would set up a Bitcoin strategic reserve and instruct the Treasury to buy up 500 Bitcoin per day until they had 4 million BTC. He would also make Bitcoin transactions tax free. According to RFK, these policies would “restore us for 250 years as the global economic leader.”

4. Carter By TKO 

Venture capitalist turned Muay Thai fighter Nic Carter won his debut match on Thursday night, defeating Coty Kuhn at the Karate Combat side event. Demonstrating his proof of work, Carter fought from the Bitcoin corner and won with a brutal kick to the ribs in the first round. Following the fight, Carter discussed his recent diagnosis with Crohn’s disease. Carter said the illness had inspired him to “just decide to do stuff.”

3. Dems Booed 

Making his case for the Democrat crypto pivot, Wiley Nickel took the stage on Saturday. He presented a letter to the DNC signed by 28 Dem lawmakers insisting on a policy shift. They demanded a pro-crypto platform, industry engagement and a new pro-innovation SEC chair. Nickel pushed the need for bipartisanship. The crowd were unimpressed and booed loudly when Nickel claimed that Trump is “totally full of s**t"

2. Lummis Reserve Bill

Later in the conference, Senator Lummis presented the legal framework to allow for a US government strategic Bitcoin reserve. Her bill proposed running the reserve through the Federal reserve and funding Bitcoin purchases using surplus Fed and Treasury funds. Lummis framed this as a “Louisiana Purchase moment” and suggested a large Bitcoin stack could be used to pay down the runaway national debt. 

1. Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve

Former President Trump made his Bitcoin pitch to a packed house on Saturday, committing to a strategic Bitcoin reserve to hodl current government BTC. The rest of the platform reads like a checklist. Right to self custody, free Ross, shut down Chokepoint 2.0 and, of course, fire Gary Gensler. Trump expressed an understanding of the geostrategic position of Bitcoin in the decades to come. A Trump White House would live by the rule, “Never sell your Bitcoin.”