Bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency, has been linked to illicit activities and condemned as part of a monetary Wild West that creates headaches for governments and regulators.
But his Bitcoin bit seemed symbolic — less about the details of changing the city’s payment options, and more about showing that New York is welcoming to digital finance.
Suarez has enhanced Miami’s profile, and his own, with his city’s pivot toward crypto.
Still, Prasad argued that New York can be a leader in blockchain technology, which is used to record bitcoin trades, while rejecting Bitcoin itself.
Elizabeth Warren , a progressive, said in a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen this summer that an unregulated cryptocurrency market presents “growing threats” to the American financial system.
It is not clear whether they should be formally defined as currencies, commodities or securities, and they can be traded anonymously.
And he emphasized that his message is not simply about Bitcoin, but about a broader acceptance of tech innovation.