Bitcoin slid overnight Tuesday after cryptocurrencies were left out of the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. One indicator, following the debate, showed increased odds that Harris would win the election. Meanwhile, crypto prices ticked up from their overnight lows following the CPI report Wednesday.
Former President Trump and Vice President Harris met on the debate stage for the first time Tuesday night. Discussion ranged from health care access and immigration to inflation and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. But one topic was absent from the second presidential debate — cryptocurrency policies.
By Wednesday morning, bets for Harris to win the presidency improved to 56% vs. 53% going into the debate, according to betting site PredictIt. Trump's odds fell to 46% from 52%.
The evening's exclusion of crypto and Harris' increased chances of winning sent digital asset prices lower overnight. Bitcoin peaked above $58,000 before the Tuesday debate and fell as low as $55,883 early Wednesday. Ethereum traded as high as $2,398 before the debate, but slumped back to $2,290 by Wednesday morning.
Crypto Still Crucial
Cryptocurrency policies have been a key topic for both candidates for the November election.
Trump and vice-presidential running mate JD Vance are both openly pro-bitcoin and are considered by many in the industry to be the crypto-friendly ticket. Trump, during a June meeting with bitcoin miners, said he would advocate for them in the White House and stated he wants the U.S. to dominate bitcoin production. The former president and his running mate have also been critical of federal crypto regulations.
Trump has vowed to fire SEC Chair Gary Gensler as well as to create a "strategic national bitcoin stockpile." The Republican nominee also recently put out his fourth line of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and holds various cryptocurrencies in his portfolio. The digital trading cards have generated millions of dollars, according to campaign filings.
In recent months, Trump's sons Eric and Donald Jr. teased an upcoming cryptocurrency project called World Liberty Financial. Politico reported on Sept. 3 that the X accounts of RNC Co-Chair Lara Trump and the former president's daughter Tiffany Trump were compromised, and hackers posted fake links to a website for the crypto project.
Meanwhile, Harris' team began reaching out to experts, including billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban, with questions regarding the crypto industry in late July after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, according to reports. Recently, Crypto4Harris, has been engaging with the Harris campaign to do a "formal reset" for crypto policies and acceptance, The Block reported.
The group describes itself on social media as a "grassroots network of crypto advocates organizing, fundraising, and developing a nuanced crypto-policy approach for the Harris For President campaign."
Meanwhile, a group of crypto investors and executives are planning to throw a fundraiser for Harris on Sept. 13 with the goal of raising at least $100,000, Reuters reported.
Elsewhere, crypto companies have poured over $119 million into federal elections this year, according to a late-August report from Public Citizen.
Bitcoin Price, Crypto Action
Cryptocurrency prices appeared poised for a small rebound following Wednesday's CPI report but continued to trade lower.
Bitcoin continues to trade around early-August lows and has pared its gains on the year to around 32%. Bitcoin hit a record high of $73,798 on March 14, surpassing its previous all-time high of $68,990 set in November 2021.
Ethereum is now up just a fraction in 2024 having retreated from its 52-week high of $4,092 on March 12.
Shares of crypto exchange Coinbase pared losses to less than 1% Wednesday. COIN stock carved 4.6% lower in the morning.
Spot bitcoin ETFs, led by the iShares Bitcoin ETF, dipped slightly Wednesday. The group retreated 3.7% early Wednesday.
Bitcoin miners Core Scientific, Marathon Digital and CleanSpark ticked slightly lower. Iren traded sideways Wednesday while Riot Platforms slid 2%.
You can follow Harrison Miller for more stock news and updates on Twitter @IBD_Harrison
