Trump Again Blasts CBDCs, Says They Allow Governments to 'Take Your Money

Just in case anyone forgot, former President Donald Trump reiterated that CBDCs (central bank digital currencies) pose a "dangerous threat to freedom," during a campaign event in New Hampshire.
During the speech, he pledged never to allow their creation in the United States if elected. Trump's remarks echo a growing chorus of concern among some political figures—including his former competitor for the Republican nomination: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. The Florida governor announced he was dropping his bid over the weekend and, importantly, lent his support to Trump.
DeSantis has been adamant in speaking out against CBDCs, going so far as to say they're part of "woke politics" and arguing that they're used for "controlling" and "surveilling" people who use them.
Now Trump, leveraging his platform, amplified these apprehensions by saying CBDCs would grant the government unprecedented control over individual finances—down to the ability to "take your money, and you wouldn’t even know it was gone."
The stance against CBDCs is not isolated to Trump. Vivek Ramaswamy, a pro-crypto figure and former presidential candidate, has also underscored a significant anti-CBDC position—and made it clear that he supports Trump's bid for the U.S. presidency.

This political discourse around CBDCs is occurring amid a broader debate on the future of money, where digital currencies, both decentralized and state-backed, are vying for a role in the evolving financial landscape.
As the 2024 presidential election approaches, the conversation around CBDCs is likely to intensify, reflecting wider societal questions about the balance between innovation in financial technologies and the preservation of individual liberties. The opposition to CBDCs by figures like Trump and DeSantis not only highlights the political dimensions of this debate but also signals a pivotal moment in the discourse on the future of digital currencies and their place in American society.
Editor’s note: This article was written with the assistance of AI. Edited and fact-checked by Stacy Elliott.

SEC: Fake Bitcoin ETF Announcement Caused by SIM Swap Attack

Two-factor authentiation on the SEC's Twitter account had been disabled since July 2023, the regulator revealed.
The fake Twitter announcement of a spot Bitcoin ETF approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ahead of the real announcement was the result of a SIM swap attack, the regulator revealed Monday.
In a statement, the SEC provided details of how its @SECGov Twitter account was "compromised," throwing the crypto market into turmoil as it posted a fake announcement that the long-awaited spot Bitcoin ETFs had been given the green light.
After consulting with its telecom carrier, the securities regulator "determined that the unauthorized party obtained control of the SEC cell phone number associated with the account in an apparent 'SIM swap' attack," the regulator revealed. "Once in control of the phone number, the unauthorized party reset the password for the @SECGov account."
The regulator noted that it is "continuing to coordinate with several law enforcement and federal oversight entities," in the ongoing investigation, which aims to discover how the unauthorized party was able to get the SEC's phone carrier to change the SIM for the account, and how they knew which phone number was associated with the account.
The SEC further revealed that multi-factor authentication (MFA) on its Twitter account had been disabled at the request of its staff since July 2023, "due to issues accessing the account." The regulator's failure to enable MFA on its Twitter account contradicts SEC chair Gary Gensler's own recommendations against identity theft and fraud, in a tweet posted in October 2023.
The incident caused chaos in the cryptocurrency market as it waited on tenterhooks for news of whether the SEC would approve or reject multiple spot Bitcoin ETFs before a window to do so closed. Following a tweet from chair Gensler retracting the fake announcement, and a follow-up tweet from the SEC's own account, Bitcoin's price plunged.