Crypto’s new era? Kevin O’Leary champions Trump’s vision, but skeptics remain

As President Donald Trump stakes his claim on the future of cryptocurrency in America, investors and industry insiders are divided on whether his administration truly marks a turning point for digital assets.

Kevin O’Leary, chairman of O’Leary Ventures and a longtime cryptocurrency advocate, recently lauded Trump’s stance on digital assets, arguing that this administration is ushering in a “new phase” for the industry.

Speaking on “My View with Lara Trump,” O’Leary asserted that the so-called “cowboy era of crypto” — marked by high-profile fraud cases and regulatory uncertainty — was over.

Recall that O’Leary was indeed affected by perhaps the biggest crypto fraud case of all — FTX. As an investor and spokesperson for the exchange, O’Leary lost a significant amount of money when Sam Bankman-Fried’s startup went bankrupt in late 2022.

“All the crypto cowboys are in jail or out of business. So now we’re in a new phase. There’s a new tone with the government. Trump has put it forward,” O’Leary said.

But rug pulls and devastating hacks are still commonplace.

Meanwhile, crypto “whales” and influencers are making a killing by pumping up coins with fake “insider knowledge,” inflating prices before cashing out, and leaving everyday investors holding the bag. It’s the Wild West out there, and the scammers are riding high.

O’Leary’s optimism comes as Trump embarks on one new crypto initiative after another.

After speaking at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference in Nashville, the then-GOP nominee launched World Liberty Financial. Two days before his inauguration, he unveiled the Official Trump (TRUMP) meme coin. And all of those SEC-led investigations into cryptocurrency-related companies (i.e., Binance and Coinbase)? They’re disappearing.

Earlier this month, Trump signed an executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. The move, which designated certain digital assets like XRP, SOL, and ADA as part of a government-backed strategic reserve, has been touted by Trump and his allies as a major step toward integrating crypto into traditional finance.

While O’Leary hails these developments as proof of a regulatory turning point, not everyone in the crypto world is convinced.

‘This ain’t it’

Critics argue that Trump’s newfound embrace of digital assets hurts the industry’s credibility and paves the way for crony capitalism.

“Crypto is at an existential moment,” Zack Guzmán, a crypto journalist and founder of the Web3 media company Trustless Media, warned on Jan. 18. “I understand the desire to make quick money; I understand the excitement of thinking short-term; I understand stand [sic] why Trump, a man who has grifted in every way to make money for himself would so easily win the industry. But this ain’t it.”

Only politically favored crypto firms will thrive under government protection, Guzmán said.

The same day Trump decided to launch a memecoin, which skyrocketed 10,000% in value, crypto elitists dressed up in tuxedos and gowns, ready to hobnob at a gala in Washington, D.C. They were completely unaware that Official Trump would soon become a digital dumpster fire (it’s currently down over 84% from its peak).

“I’m not saying Trump just used everyone in crypto by throwing a black tie event in DC while simultaneously launching a memecoin without them, but that’s exactly what he did,” Guzmán wrote on Jan. 18. “This industry is his industry now, whether they are aware of it or not. Frankly, that’s extremely sad.”

‘Stupid and embarrassing’

After Trump launched Official Trump, Balaji Srinivasan, a cryptocurrency investor, called meme coins a “zero sum game.”

“There is no wealth creation,” he tweeted the day before Trump’s inauguration. “Every buy order is simply matched by a sell order. And after an initial spike, the price eventually crashes and the last buyers lose everything.”

Crypto entrepreneur Erik Voorhees wrote on X:

Trumpcoin is stupid and embarrassing. Trumpcoin is a signal of sea change in US fintech policy towards much more permissive innovation. Both are true.

SkyBridge founder and former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci called it “Idi Amin-level corruption”, referring to the military officer whose Ugandan rule in the 1970s was defined by corruption.

And that Bitcoin reserve — the one David Sacks, Trump’s crypto czar, says will be filled with seized digital assets — seems far-fetched, too. Crypto analyst Dessislava Aubert told the Agence France-Presse that the U.S. government must return seized Bitcoin to all victims identified as suffering from a hack.

Despite the skepticism, O’Leary remains steadfast in his belief that Trump’s policies will legitimize crypto in ways no previous administration has.

“The big news is that this will be the first administration that’s going to say this sector belongs in America. The development should be here. The technology should be mastered here. We should lead the world in it,” O’Leary added.

Whether Trump’s promises translate into lasting regulatory clarity—or are merely political grandstanding—remains an open question. For now, the crypto world watches closely, caught between hope and deep-seated doubt.