- Market selloff rattles investors but not crypto veterans.
- Bitcoin hodlrs have seen this cycle before.
- Sceptics question the wisdom of Trump's policy.
Even as Wall Street billionaires such as Bill Ackman urge Donald Trump to reverse course or at least pause his punishing tariff plan, leading crypto voices have a different message — don’t sweat it.
Or most of them, anyway.
That’s the upshot as the capital markets reckon with the 5.5% slide since Friday.
Here’s what some big crypto players are saying about Trump’s tariffs and rocky markets:
Bitwise’s Matt Hougan
“The most certain outcome of the tariff push is the US dollar will no longer be the sole reserve currency of the world,” said Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan on X.
He has previously said that he expects Bitcoin will be a beneficiary, saying that its price will exceed $1 million by 2029.
Gemini’s Cameron Winklevoss
Some of his most outspoken supporters in the crypto industry are holding fast, including Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of crypto exchange Gemini.
“If Trump sent the stock market to the moon, liberal pundits would be saying he’s just helping the rich get richer,” Winklevoss wrote on April 5.
“Instead, he’s focused on bringing back Main Street and same coastal elites are still crying bloody murder.”
Nansen’s Alex Svanevik
Several crypto influencers have taken to gallows humour as Bitcoin fell to $76,000 Monday. Ether briefly fell below $1,500, its lowest level since 2022.
Alex Svanevik, founder of crypto data platform Nansen, called the equation the White House used to calculate the tariffs “the most expensive formula in human history.”
Investor Nic Carter
Others have argued critics are overreacting to the tariffs and the subsequent market crash.
“Personally, a day or two of price action doesn’t mean anything at all,” crypto investor Nic Carter wrote. Carter is a prominent Trump backer.
“But since you all have decided asset prices are the sole rubric of presidential success don’t be surprised when we shove the V shaped recovery down your throat in a quarter or two.”
WSPN CEO Austin Campbell
Crypto developers, investors, and executives span the political gamut, and some have doubled down on their longstanding skepticism of the president.
“Did anyone vote for Trump to bring sweatshops back onshore and triple the price of coffee?” WSPN CEO Austin Campbell wrote.
“Genuinely curious what the motivation around this particular solution is.”
Ethereum researcher Justin Drake
Amidst all the market turmoil and speculation, Drake urged crypto users to focus on the mission of blockchain technology.
“Today’s a good day to remember why we’re here,” he wrote.
“Network effects, not isolationism. Fairness by design, not cronyism. Open competition, not oligopoly. Network states, not nationalism. Frictionless markets, not tariffs. Innovators, not lobbyists. Builders, not lawyers. Devs, not politicians.”
Aleks Gilbert is DL News’ New York-based DeFi reporter. You can reach him at aleks@dlnews.com.
