Key Points
- The White House hosted its first-ever Crypto Summit, sparking both optimism and uncertainty in the industry.
- The event, hosted by President Trump and David Sacks, was marked by a surprising focus on a FIFA coin.
The much-anticipated White House Crypto Summit has left the industry with mixed feelings. The event was not as focused on cryptocurrency as expected.
On March 7, the White House held its inaugural Crypto Summit. U.S. President Donald Trump and leading industry executives held discussions about the future of crypto and blockchain in the United States.
Summit Expectations and Reality
The event, hosted by Trump’s crypto advisor and venture capitalist David Sacks, was thought to indicate a significant change in the federal government’s view of cryptocurrency. However, the reality was a blend of promoting a FIFA token, praising Trump’s willingness to embrace crypto, and not much else.
The specifics of the closed-door discussions remain unknown, but industry leaders, including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor, and the Winklevoss twins, left with a renewed sense of optimism about Washington’s direction.
FIFA Coin and High-IQ People
The summit’s opening had little to do with crypto, as Trump, for unexplained reasons, gave the first speech slot to Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA. Infantino presented a new trophy and expressed interest in developing a FIFA coin.
Once the sports detour ended, Trump echoed the popular crypto mantra “never sell your Bitcoin”, trying to align with industry sentiment. However, his follow-up comment seemed to dampen the enthusiasm of crypto executives.
The remainder of the media-accessible portion of the summit was dedicated to thanking Trump for his interest in cryptocurrency. When it was time for the crypto industry executives to express their appreciation for the summit, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong was ignored twice when he indicated his wish to speak.
Industry Reaction
Despite the positive sentiment among executives, the broader crypto community was left uncertain. With no transparency about what was discussed behind closed doors, the White House Crypto Summit seemingly failed to meet the high expectations of retail investors. A Bybit analytics report noted that while some cryptocurrency spot prices rose after Trump’s announcement of a “crypto strategic reserve,” funding rates remained stable, indicating that the market “needs a stronger boost than Trump’s crypto strategic reserve.”
