Eric Trump Says Father's Energy Policies Will Help Crypto
US President Donald Trump's son Eric on Thursday assured the world's leading crypto conference that Washington would hoard "a tremendous amount of bitcoin," aided by his father's policies of slashing environmental protections to ramp up energy production.
In front of a packed crowd at the Consensus conference in Toronto, the younger Trump promoted his latest venture into the crypto industry, American Bitcoin, which he said aims to mine the digital currency more cheaply than its rivals.
The US crypto industry has welcomed Trump's return to the White House, praising policies its says mark a clear departure from the deep skepticism of the previous Democratic administration toward digital currencies.
But the Trump family's entry into the crypto sector, from American Bitcoin to family-backed projects like World Liberty Financial and the $TRUMP meme coin, have increased potential ethical concerns.
$TRUMP saw a spike in value when it announced that its top 220 holders would be invited to a dinner with the president -- with the top 25 receiving "an exclusive reception" beforehand -- set to take place on May 22 at the Trump National Golf Club near Washington.
Eric Trump told the conference his father's administration's commitment to drive down US energy costs would help large-scale crypto mining businesses that need data centers, which consume massive amounts of energy.
"We have a president in the United States that actually believes in having a proper energy policy in the United States of America, where he wants the cheapest energy anywhere in the world because that's going to fuel all the innovation that we're talking about right now," he said.
The Trump administration has made bringing down energy prices and increasing domestic supply a key policy, along with rolling back clean energy initiatives and opening more federal land and offshore areas for oil and gas drilling.
Similar bitcoin mining businesses in France and Scotland are not viable, Eric Trump argued, because "the energy price is too high."
Trump said he sees the bitcoin sector as a competition with "two races."
One area is the accumulation of bitcoin, whose value topped $100,000 again this month.
"Then I think there's the game of who can mine it the cheapest."
American Bitcoin will strive to "accumulate a tremendous amount of bitcoin," he said.
"But I also want to be the person who's mining it, by far the cheapest. And I think we can win that race."
Bitcoin mining involves using computing power to solve complex mathematical problems.
The data centers increasingly required for large-scale mining have drawn criticism from environmentalists over their substantial energy needs.
American Bitcoin announced plans this week to go public on the New York Stock exchange via a merger with Gryphon Digital Mining Inc.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Int'l Business Times
an hour ago
- Int'l Business Times
G7 Leaders Urge Trump To Ease Off Trade War
World leaders at the Group of Seven summit in Canada on Monday tried to push US President Donald Trump to back away from his punishing trade war that poses a risk to global economic stability. At a summit where host Canada hopes to avoid stoking Trump's anger, and with attention on events in the Middle East, leaders still urged the US leader to reverse course on his plans to slap even steeper tariffs on countries across the globe as early as next month. "Several participants asked to end the tariff dispute as soon as possible. They argued that this dispute weakens the G7's economies and in the end will only strengthen China," a senior German official told reporters on condition of anonymity. The six other countries urged Trump to end his trade conflict as soon as possible, telling him that his protectionist policies were only "damaging to ourselves," the official added. Most countries represented at the G7 are already subject to a 10 percent baseline tariff imposed by Trump, under a temporary easing of higher rates, with European countries and Japan also slapped with additional levies on cars and steel and aluminum. Britain in May was the first country to sign a preliminary deal with Washington to avoid deeper tariffs, and the two leaders at the G7 said they had agreed on the accord's final points and signed the agreement. "I like them. That's the ultimate protection," Trump told reporters after a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the G7 sidelines. Trump opened a folder to display the signed documents, only for the paperwork to slide out and spread across the ground. "Oops, sorry about that," he said as Starmer scrambled to gather up the loose sheets and stuff them back in the folder. The trade issue is of particular interest to Canada after the Trump administration announced several extra levies on Canadian imports in recent months, throwing the country's economic future into deep uncertainty. After a meeting between Trump and Prime Minister Mark Carney, the Canadian government indicated that the two sides could come to a trade truce deal in the next 30 days. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum will also have her face-to-face time with Trump as her country tries to renegotiate its three-way North American free trade agreement that also includes Canada. While there is little expectation that the summit will see a breakthrough in the trade negotiations between the US and the rest of the world, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is part of Trump's delegation. Dozens of countries are locked in negotiations with Washington to clinch some sort of trade deal before the US imposes stinging reciprocal tariffs, threatened for July 9. But US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week said that the date could be pushed back later for countries thought to be negotiating in good faith. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told reporters he would team up with his counterparts from France and Italy to discuss the US trade threat with Trump directly. A source at the summit said that French President Emmanuel Macron urged the American leader to quickly end the trade conflict once and for all. The European Commission handles trade negotiations for the 27-country bloc, and the EU's trade chief Maros Sefcovic was also attending the summit, accompanying the delegation of EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen. The EU institutions are official members of the G7, and during the morning session, von der Leyen argued to the leaders that "tariffs -- no matter who sets them -- are ultimately a tax paid by consumers and businesses at home." Von der Leyen also met with Trump one-on-one on trade issues in a sit-down that US officials said was at her request. "We instructed the teams to accelerate their work to strike a good and fair deal. Let's get it done," she said in a post on X.
Int'l Business Times
an hour ago
- Int'l Business Times
Markets Rebound As Conflict Containment Hopes Ease Investor Jitters
U.S. stocks rallied Monday as investor confidence returned, buoyed by optimism that the escalating hostilities between Israel and Iran may remain contained. The S&P 500 rose 0.9% to close at 6,033.11, bolstered by a standout performance from Estée Lauder, which surged 10.78%. The Nasdaq climbed 1.52% to 19,701.21, and the Dow Jones added 0.8%, closing at 42,515.09, supported in part by gains across the banking sector. The rebound in sentiment extended across global markets. South Korea's Kospi advanced 1.8%, and Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 1.3%, marking some of the day's strongest performances. Chinese markets also ticked higher after new data showed a rise in consumer spending in May, despite headwinds in industrial growth and investment. Stocks gained 0.7% in Hong Kong and 0.3% in Shanghai. Energy markets painted a contrasting picture. Despite continuing military exchanges between Israel and Iran, oil prices slipped after spiking late last week. Brent crude, the global benchmark, dropped 2% to $72.78 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate fell 2.4% to $71.23. Analysts pointed to easing concerns about disruptions to global oil flows, especially with no direct impact on the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping lane. Hopes for diplomacy surfaced as Iran's foreign minister hinted at potential U.S. engagement following reports of high-level communication between Washington and Israeli leadership. Nonetheless, the conflict showed no signs of abating, with missile attacks ongoing. An Israeli airstrike reportedly disrupted Iranian state media temporarily, while Iran's recent missile barrage into Israel claimed 11 lives. Back on Wall Street, positive investor sentiment was also reflected in corporate news. Sage Therapeutics soared 35.4% after agreeing to a potential $795 million buyout by Supernus Pharmaceuticals. U.S. Steel rose 5.1% following a U.S. executive order enabling Japanese firm Nippon Steel to invest, potentially giving the government oversight over its operations. Those gains helped counter losses in the defense sector. Shares of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman both declined nearly 4%, pulling back from Friday's surge driven by conflict-related demand expectations. Gold also reversed course, dropping 1.4% to $3,403 per ounce after a brief flight to safety the previous trading day. Investor attention is now shifting to the Federal Reserve's upcoming policy meeting. While markets broadly expect interest rates to remain unchanged, new forecasts from Fed officials could sway sentiment. Analysts at Bank of America suggest only one rate cut might be penciled in for the year—fewer than the two anticipated by investors. Inflation remains within the Fed's 2% target, though uncertainty around U.S. trade policy, including tariffs imposed by President Trump, continues to cast a shadow. With the G7 summit underway and additional economic data such as May retail sales on the horizon, markets appear cautiously optimistic—though far from complacent.
Int'l Business Times
3 hours ago
- Int'l Business Times
ICE Protests Pop Up on Roblox as Kids Organize Virtual Demonstrations: 'FRICK ICE'
As protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) efforts continue around the country, kids have begun creating their own protests online using the popular gaming site Roblox. Videos of such protests have been shared to TikTok, where players can be seen holding signs with anti-ICE slogans behind what appear to be police barricades as sirens flash and whir in the background. Some popular phrases on the signs include "FU ICE," "Viva Mexico" and "ICE Out of California," in reference to the Los Angeles protests against President Donald Trump's mass deportation efforts that have resulted in dozens of arrests over the last week. "FRICK ICE!" reads one caption of a TikTok that has amassed more than 6,000 views. Other players cosplay as police officers walking along the protest line, or even as ICE agents by creating ICE vans or trucks to drive around in. In one TikTok with more than 24,000 views, other players commented under the video, asking when the next protest would be and if they could join in. Protests against ICE began popping up around the country inspired by the Los Angeles demonstrations after lawmakers from all political parties turned their attention to the thousands of people attending. In response, Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines to help quell the protests, which sparked intense backlash from California politicians. Gov. Gavin Newsom referred to the deployment as a "serious breach of sovereignty" after announcing the state would sue the Trump administration. Millions of people are believed to also have taken part in the "No Kings" protests on Saturday in protest of various Trump administration policies. The protests across the country took place the same day as Trump's military parade celebrating the 250th birthday of the U.S. Army, which also fell on his birthday. Originally published on Latin Times Donald trump Immigration Immigration reform
