New York, Thursday, September 18, 2024 – Donald Trump made his first public Bitcoin purchase at PubKey Bar in New York City, a Bitcoin-themed venue popular with crypto enthusiasts yesterday, reports said.
Trump, who was in town for a campaign rally at the Nassau Coliseum, bought a cheeseburger using Bitcoin, marking his first public transaction with the cryptocurrency.
“History in the making,” Trump said after the purchase, which PubKey Bar quickly celebrated on social media.
The bar’s X account posted, “One of the most historic transactions in #bitcoin history was just made. President @realDonaldTrump buying burgers at @PubKey_NYC.”
Trump’s embrace of Bitcoin is seen as a significant shift in his stance on cryptocurrency, which earlier this year saw him open up his campaign to crypto donations.
He has since called for the United States to become “the crypto capital of the world.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s latest crypto project, World Liberty Financial, has faced criticism from both advocates and skeptics.
Launched as a DeFi initiative with a governance token, WLFI, the project has been met with suspicion. Critics argue the project is opportunistic and lacks transparency.
Critics said that Trump’s sudden enthusiasm for cryptocurrency is as transparent as it is opportunistic.
Others point to the project’s limited participation model, which restricts access to accredited investors, raising concerns about the exclusion of broader communities from decentralized finance.
Despite these challenges, the project has drawn attention to DeFi and sparked further conversations about crypto’s role in modern finance.
