Donald Trump offers private meetings at bitcoin conference for $800,000 a person

Although former President Donald Trump once called Bitcoin “a scam” and “a disaster waiting to happen,” the presidential candidate has embraced cryptocurrencies in recent months in an effort to broaden his appeal among an influential electorate and boost campaign finances for the November election.

Crypto spending has already surpassed $121 million in this year’s election campaign, and Trump plans to speak at the annual Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, to further increase that number. Trump will offer private meetings to crypto industry members during the event, worth more than $800,000 per person, making it a major fundraising opportunity for the Republican presidential candidate.

“We are proud to host [Trump] “We are here to share the solidarity of the global Bitcoin community and our universal commitment to freedom of expression and peaceful democracy,” Bitcoin Conference 2024 organizers said regarding Trump’s participation.

More than 200,000 attendees are expected to flock to Music City Center to see Trump and other conference speakers, with vendors at the venue hawking “Make Bitcoin Great Again” hats and other memorabilia commemorating Trump’s appearance.

But security has been tightened at the Bitcoin Conference since Trump’s high-profile assassination attempt in Pennsylvania earlier this month, with organizers banning large bags from the main stage where Trump was speaking.

Outside the convention hall of the Bitcoin Conference 2024, a mobile billboard vehicle displayed images of Donald Trump and vice presidential candidate JD Vance. The van’s digital screen promoted a cryptocurrency called “MAGA VP,” which is not officially associated with the Trump campaign but offers a special reward for those who invest $50 in the token. Even the restrooms were adorned with ads for a meme coin supporting JD Vance.

Meanwhile, Kamala Harris, who is expected to be the Democratic presidential candidate, declined the organizers’ invitation to attend the Bitcoin Conference this year. [Harris] “If he had told us while he was actively jailing developers, pushing our industry overseas, attacking PoW… it would have been a disaster for him. All eyes on Trump now,” organizer David Bailey said on social media.

Kamala Harris will not speak @BitcoinConf. No surprise. What can he possibly say to us when he’s actively jailing developers, pushing our industry overseas, attacking PoW… that would be a disaster for him.

All eyes are on Trump now.

— David Bailey🇵🇷 $0.65m/btc floor (@DavidFBailey) July 24, 2024

Despite once issuing statements decrying bitcoin, Trump has since changed his stance on the world’s largest cryptocurrency. Earlier this year, Trump hosted bitcoin mining CEOs at Mar-a-Lago, and in May, Trump’s campaign even began accepting donations of bitcoin, ether, and Dogecoin.

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During the conference, Trump is expected to outline his policy positions on bitcoin and galvanize the long-ignored crypto constituency. Longtime bitcoiners expect Trump to replace current U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Gary Gensler with a more crypto-friendly regulator and enact more industry-friendly policies that will encourage domestic innovation in the crypto industry.

I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies which are not money and whose value is highly volatile and in the air. Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate illegal behavior including drug dealing and other illegal activities….

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019

Trump’s vice presidential candidate, J.D. Vance, is also looking to the crypto industry for dollars. California-based crypto firm BitGo is holding a fundraiser for him and Trump next week in Palo Alto, Calif. His latest financial disclosure forms show Vance owns up to a quarter of a million in cryptocurrencies.