One of President Trump’s former advisors is getting into the bitcoin and cryptocurrency market. Steve Bannon said in an interview with the New York Times that he has been working in the currency field through his Bannon and Company firm.
Bannon stated in his interview that he has a sizeable stake in the bitcoin. He has also expressed a strong interest in working with countries and groups that want to produce their own currencies.
About Bannon
Steve Bannon is a former chief strategist to President Trump who left his position last year. Bannon is believed to have been a key architect of Trump’s proposed “travel ban” that kept many people from Muslim-majority countries from entering into the United States.
He was also the head of Breitbart, a prominent conservative media outlet. The website has been a major cheerleader of sorts for Trump and has been controversial for many of its reporting tactics and opinion pieces.
Details on how much cryptocurrency Bannon has invested in are unclear at this time. He has not made statements on how much he has earned off of the currency market.
A Decentralized Potential
Bannon stated in his interview that he is not too concerned about the financial potential of the bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency. He instead is interested in the way how currencies can disrupt the traditional economy structure just like how Donald Trump disrupted international politics.
Bannon refers to cryptocurrencies as a form of “disruptive populism.” This means that the currency field is being taken back from traditional economic groups that have controlled much of the field over the years. The decentralized industry ensures that data currencies can move from one group to another without outside governmental regulation.
A Possible New Currency
Steve Bannon also stated in his New York Times interview that he has considered forming his own cryptocurrency in the future. He has not established any specifics over how his currency would work and what he would be doing with it, but having a currency would continue his strong interest in the field.
Bannon says that he would call his currency the “deplorables coin,” although he says that might be subject to change. The name is a reference of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 reference of a portion of Donald Trump’s supporters as a “basket of deplorables.” Trump supporters have been using the term “deplorable” as a badge of honor since then.
Much of Bannon’s work on the currency field has been held at his home. This is the same home where much of Breitbart’s functions have taken place at.
Concern About Links To the Alt-Right
Although Bannon’s interest in cryptocurrencies has been noted, there are worries that Bannon may be targeting people on the alt-right with such a currency. These people on the alt-right include white nationalists who use and support cryptocurrencies because they have been banned from using various traditional payment methods. Many people on the extreme right have been supportive of Bannon’s moves and are believed to make up a sizeable portion of Breitbart’s readership.
