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RFK Jr. touted bitcoin, but said he wasn’t an investor. Financial records show otherwise

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RFK Jr. touted bitcoin, but said he wasn’t an investor. Financial records show otherwise

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democratic candidate for president, stood at the world’s biggest bitcoin conference in Miami in May and told the crowd, “I am not an investor and I am not here to give investment advice.” Then he announced he would be accepting campaign donations in bitcoin.

What Kennedy didn’t tell the crowd was that his family had invested in bitcoin recently, according to a financial disclosure form he filed June 30. On the twelfth page of the report, Kennedy lists a brokerage account that held between $100,001 and $250,000 worth of bitcoin. Hours after publication of this story, Kennedy’s campaign manager, former Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich, told CNBC that the bitcoin purchase was made after the speech in Miami and before the June 30 filing deadline.

The situation could represent a conflict of interest if Kennedy were touting bitcoin on the campaign trail while his immediate family held the cryptocurrency, according to Virginia Canter, the chief ethics counsel for watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

“There is no conflict here,” Kucinich told CNBC in a follow-up interview.

Since the conference, Kennedy has continued to tout bitcoin.

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In late June, he tweeted: “Bitcoin is not only a bulwark against totalitarianism and the manipulation of our money supply, it points the way toward a future in which government institutions are more transparent and more democratic.” The tweet includes a video to his Miami speech where he describes how he would be pro-bitcoin as president.

The filing says the bitcoin holding made less than $201 in income but doesn’t say when it was purchased. Nor does the filing say who purchased it or how much the family may have spent on their original investment. It also doesn’t say whether they sold their bitcoin holding.

The bitcoin holding is listed under a section on the form that includes assets that can also belong to spouses and dependent children. It is intended to reflect holdings from the “preceding calendar year and current year to filing date,” according to the Office of Government Ethics. Kennedy is married to “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star Cheryl Hines and has six children. Kennedy signed and filed the disclosure form to the Office of Government Ethics at the end of last month, according to the document.

After CNBC made multiple attempts to get a comment, the Kennedy campaign confirmed hours after the publication of this story that “the investments were not his, but his wife’s. He is not involved in her investment decisions.” The campaign did not say for how long Hines has held the bitcoin investment or when she purchased the asset.

Before the Kennedy campaign commented, CREW’s Canter said the ownership is certainly current as of June 30, when he filed his disclosure. “Under a traditional conflict of interest analysis, Hines’ financial interests are imputed to him,” Canter said.

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“I’m really concerned that he’s speaking at this conference, touting this investment to potential voters while the family has a history of owning bitcoin. It’s like he could do the same thing for Procter and Gamble,” she added. “There’s no difference in my mind from a conflicts perspective.”

After Kennedy’s appearance in May at the Miami conference, CNBC inquired whether Kennedy had any crypto holdings. “Mr. Kennedy has no crypto holdings,” a spokeswoman for the campaign said at the time.

Kennedy said at the conference that if he were to become president he would “make sure that your right to hold and use bitcoin is inviolable.”

President Joe Biden’s administration has waged an aggressive fight in regards to cryptocurrencies. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler told CNBC in June “we don’t need more digital currency” after the SEC sued crypto exchange Coinbase for allegedly acting as an unregistered broker and exchange.

Bitcoin’s price has seen an upswing recently, hitting a 13-month high on Thursday, despite parts of the crypto industry seeing headwinds.

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Kennedy’s campaign has seized attention from several wealthy supporters, even as he remains far behind Biden in Democratic primary polls. A Quinnipiac survey from June shows Biden with 70 % support among Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters, while Kennedy nabs 17%. Kennedy, 69, is the son of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated in the 1960s.

Kennedy’s pro-bitcoin stance has aligned him with several top tech investors, such as billionaire and bitcoin enthusiast Jack Dorsey, with several of them offering support for his presidential run. Others include David Sacks, Chamath Palihapitiya and Omeed Malik.

Kennedy, who has come under fire for spreading misinformation about vaccines at large, has a history of boosting bitcoin. His nonprofit, Children’s Health Defense, also has an interest in cryptocurrencies.

Their 2021 tax records shows under the “investments” section that the group had crypto valued at over $78,000. A spokeswoman for CHD, which reportedly played a key role in pushing back on Covid vaccines and helping elevate Kennedy’s profile before he ran for president, previously told CNBC that the cryptocurrencies listed were not “investments” but, in fact, “donations.” The CHD website shows that bitcoin is one of the accepted cryptocurrencies to donate toward the nonprofit group.

In April, before he started running for president, Kennedy tweeted what appeared to be an endorsement of bitcoin being a tool to avoid impacts from a struggling U.S. economy.

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“Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin give the public an escape route from the splatter zone when this bubble invariably bursts,” Kennedy said.

In May, days before he took the stage the Miami bitcoin conference, Kennedy tweeted: “Cryptocurrencies, led by bitcoin, along with other crypto technologies are a major innovation engine. It is a mistake for the U.S. government to hobble the industry and drive innovation elsewhere.”

A day later he tweeted: “Bitcoin has been a lifesaver for people’s movements around the world.”

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Voice of Web3 by Coingape : Showcasing India’s Cryptocurrency Potential

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Voice of Web3 by Coingape : Showcasing India’s Cryptocurrency Potential

Coingape’s “Voice of Web3” is an inaugural event that is set to attract over 1000 crypto leaders and enthusiasts in late June. The conference intends to have conversations with participants so that they understand how blockchain and cryptocurrency can democratize India’s policy, financial services, and business sectors. It further seeks to encourage mass adoption by bringing together the tech, startup, and developer communities. The event has multiple tracks for everyone, such as a session on future innovations, the evolution of money, business transformation, or even “Crypto 101.”.

Mark your calendar for the last week of June as Coingape brings to you Voice of Web3. This will be a one-stop stage for all things cryptoeconomic, and by this, it means that there is no going back. With the rapid expansion in the realm of cryptocurrencies in the dynamic landscape of digital finance, this event stands out as an icon for enlightenment and inventive ideas.

Why Should You Attend Voice of Web3?

With Crypto leading the pack at the beginning of the ‘financial internet’, Voice of Web3 plans to bring together more than 1,000 crypto leaders, thinkers, and investors under one virtual podium. This gathering will give room for discussing India’s crypto economy, from first principles to difficult policy conversations.

Whoever you are and whatever your work entails, Voice of Web3 summons you towards a better understanding and design of future finance trends. The tailor-made event suits experienced professional traders, regulators swimming amid policy frameworks, venture capitalists looking for breakthroughs, and corporate leaders looking forward to growth opportunities elsewhere.

What’s on Offer at Voice of Web3

The Voice of Web3 event is designed to be an immersive experience with four distinct tracks that are built for various interests and expertise levels found within the crypto and blockchain industry. Here’s a look at each of the tracks that await attendees.

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  • Future: This track looks at crypto and blockchain innovations and trends that may disrupt businesses and economies, talking about future money in a DeFi world or the rise of creator economies as well as DAOs.
  • Money: Decoding the DeFi landscape, what it means for the future of money as well as central bank digital currencies (CBDC), implications of tokenization physical assets.
  • Business: For your business transformation involving cryptocurrency, discuss navigating regulations, financing crypto projects, NFTs for gaming, and the creator economy.
  • Crypto 101: This track is meant for beginners who know nothing about cryptocurrencies, providing a primer on the basics such as tokens, protocols, or important concepts, i.e., DeFi lending and threatening strategies.

Coingape’s Voice of Web3 is expected to become a significant turning point that will close the gap between the theory and practice of the cryptocurrency economy. This is an opportunity you can’t afford to miss out on; be part of the conversation that shapes the future of finance in India and beyond. Ensure your place at the forefront of the crypto revolution by registering today.

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Disclaimer
This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/ editorial involvement of CoinGape. CoinGape does not endorse/ subscribe to the contents of the article/advertisement and/or views expressed herein. Do your market research before taking any actions . The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.

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Bitcoin Remains Above $65k—What’s Next For The Cryptocurrency?

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Bitcoin Remains Above $65k—What’s Next For The Cryptocurrency?

Bitcoin prices have maintained their strength over the last 24 hours, retaining the vast majority of the gains that materialized during the cryptocurrency’s latest rally.

The world’s largest digital currency by total market capitalization was trading above $65,000 at the time of this writing, according to CoinMarketCap data.

The digital asset held that value after rallying more than 8% in under 24 hours, reaching its highest since approximately April 24 and then extending those gains, additional CoinMarketCap figures show.

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Focusing in on bitcoin’s short-term outlook, several market observers highlighted key fundamental developments that could impact the digital asset’s price, in addition to singling out price levels that could provide key support or resistance.

Brett Sifling, an investment advisor for Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management, offered some input on this situation.

“Bitcoin remains range bound since the end of February, as the halving event wasn’t enough to push it to new highs,” he stated via emailed comments.

“I don’t see any other major catalysts on the horizon, other than increased institutional adoption. There is also the potential for the Fed to lower rates later this year, which could bring increased optimism for risk-on assets like Bitcoin,” said Sifling, referring to the federal funds rate, which is controlled by Federal Reserve policymakers.

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The decisions of the Federal Open Market Committee have generated quite a bit of visibility over the last few years, as these government officials pushed the fed funds rate, which has an impact on broader borrowing costs, to its highest level since 2008.

This, in turn, has provided a significant headwind for economic activity, but inflation data has remained stubbornly high at many points in spite of high borrowing costs.

Yesterday, headline inflation figures that fell short of economist estimates were cited as a catalyst that helped bitcoin prices rally. This development was credited with helping provide investors with greater hopes that the Fed will cut rates soon.

Technical Analysis

As for the key price levels that technical traders should monitor going forward, Sifling offered some guidance.

“The recent all-time highs in March of around ~$74,000 is a key level to watch, as well as the lows of this recent range at ~$56,500,” he stated.

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Grant Tungate, head of business development for Blockforce Capital, also shed some light on this matter.

“I don’t want to make any predictions but I’ll provide some commentary on levels I believe are important,” he said via email.

“Key levels are the new 30d high ~$67.3k, then the all time high ~$74k. On the downside the 30d low ~$57k is an important zone,” Tungate added, pinpointing figures similar to those identified by Sifling.

Armando Aguilar, an independent cryptocurrency analyst, also offered some input on this subject.

“The next critical support level for BTC holds in the high $62k range, if BTC struggles to maintain these levels it could retest low $61k range,” he stated.

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“The resistance levels for BTC are in the mid $66k which if breached, we could see the blue chip cryptocurrency cruise to mid/high $68k,” Aguilar added.

“The ATH does provide a key resistance level which would require BTC inflows to pick up as it was the case for the first 2 months since launch. Don’t immediately see levels passing ATH as most custodians have reached maximum distribution capacity thus seeing low inflows into BTC,” he concluded.

Disclosure: I own some bitcoin, bitcoin cash, litecoin, ether, EOS and sol.

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Portland police alert public to court scam involving cryptocurrency – Newport Dispatch

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Portland police alert public to court scam involving cryptocurrency – Newport Dispatch

PORTLAND — The Portland Police Department is warning residents about a scam where callers, posing as officials from the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, claim that the victims are in contempt of court for failing to appear as witnesses in a trial.

The scammers then demand payment of a substantial fine to avoid further charges, including arrest.

Victims are being instructed to make payments through Coinstar machines using Dogecoin or other cryptocurrencies.

The phone number used for the scam calls, when searched on Google, appears to be associated with the Cumberland County Courthouse.

Authorities urge anyone who receives such calls not to engage with the scammer.

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Instead, they should contact the courthouse directly at 207-822-4200 to verify the legitimacy of the call.

Officials have clarified that the courthouse will never request payments over the phone.

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