TRM Labs exec likens excitement about crypto under Trump to ‘space race’ hype

The excitement around crypto in the US under President-elect Donald Trump’s term is akin to a space race, according to Ari Redbord, head of legal and government affairs at TRM Labs.

During an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box, Redbord mentioned that “people are the policy” and highlighted Trump’s pro-crypto nominations for his cabinet so far, such as Paul Atkins as the new Chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and David Sacks as the “crypto czar.”

He added:

“There is this excitement, and I think sort of cadence, of almost a space race where the US is now in a position to keep up with the rest of the world, or even surpass the rest of the world.”

Bitcoin reserve

As Bitcoin (BTC) again surpassed the $100,000 price threshold on Jan. 6, Redbord said that a positive policy shift, such as establishing a strategic BTC reserve in the US, would boost the asset’s value creation.

He also expressed his excitement about the widespread use of blockchain technology in the US, citing fintech companies such as Stripe that use stablecoins for payments.

Although investors see Bitcoin as a consolidated store of value, Redbord stated that the expansion of blockchain use in financial transactions will foster growth in the crypto industry.

Redbord refrained from sharing specific price targets for Bitcoin but said he believes it will go “significantly higher,” boosted by a strategic Bitcoin reserve in the US.

Notably, he assessed that the idea of such a reserve in the US could spark a broader movement:

“When countries around the world look at the election, look at some of the campaign promises, and now look at what the Trump administration is already doing, I think we are starting to see more countries, and even states [in the US].”

Metaplanet CEO Simon Georvich recently shared the same view about a potential Bitcoin reserve in the US. He said that such a move by the world’s biggest economy could trigger a race among nations, with the last to act paying the highest price.

Last week, the Swiss chancellery approved a proposal to add BTC to its national reserves, and a Hong Kong lawmaker advocated the same effort for his country.

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