DAVID: WELCOME BACK.
IT’S BEEN A HUGE WEEK
FOR CRYPTO, THE SECOND
U.S. BITCOIN ETF BEGINS
TRADING TODAY AND HERE
NOW IS BITCOIN
FOUNDATION CHAIRMAN
BROCK PIERCE.
A GOOD TO SEE YOU.
WHAT IS THE FOUNDATION
DO?
WHAT YOUR GOAL?
>> BITCOIN FOUNDATION
WAS CREATED IN THE EARLY
DAYS OF BITCOIN TO
ASSIST WITH THE
DEVELOPMENT IN THE CORE
CODE, TO BASICALLY BE A
CHANNEL FOUR MEDIA TO
CONTACT AND CONNECT WITH
VARIOUS CONSTITUENTS IN
THE INDUSTRY, TO DO
ADVOCACY WORK AND SO I
WAS BROUGHT IN OR
ELECTED TO THE BOARD AND
THEN MADE CHAIRMAN TO
DISTRIBUTE THE
AUTHORITY.
PEOPLE FELT THE
ORGANIZATION HAD TOO
MUCH POWER IN AN
INDUSTRY THAT’S ABOUT
DECENTRALIZATION, SO THE
FOUNDATION IS REALLY
FOCUSED RIGHT NOW IN
HAVING CONVERSATIONS
WITH FOREIGN
GOVERNMENTS, LEADERS OF
NATIONS AND REALLY
ASSIST WITH ADVOCACY
WORK, EVANGELISM
BASICALLY POLICY
ADVISING.
DAVID: CENTRAL BANKS AROUND THE
WORLD DIFFER ON MANY ISSUES
WHETHER THEY ARE FOR NEGATIVE
INTEREST RATES WERE NOT, BUT ONE
THING THEY DON’T DIFFER ON IS
THE THIRST FOR POWER APPEARED
THEY LOVE THE POWER THAT THEY
HAD AND THEY ARE RELUCTANT TO
GIVE IT UP AND FRANKLY I THINK
THEY ARE AFRAID OF CRYPTO, DON’T
YOU?
>> I’M NOT SURE FEAR IS
THE RIGHT ANSWER.
I THINK THEY GENERALLY
DON’T KNOW ENOUGH AND SO
PEOPLE TEND TO FEAR THAT
WHICH THEY DON’T
UNDERSTAND AND YOU
CONQUER FEAR WITH
KNOWLEDGE WHICH IS WHY I
SPEND SO MUCH TIME
EDUCATING CENTRAL
BANKERS BECAUSE THE MORE
YOU KNOW--
DAVID: THE WHOLE DEAL WITH
CRYPTO’S IS THE IDEA OF
ANONYMITY AND BEING ABLE TO MAKE
MOVES WITHOUT SOMEONE WATCHING
OVER YOUR SHOULDER AND BIG
BROTHER FRANKLY IS LOOMING
LARGER AND LARGER, NOT SMALLER
AND SMALLER SO I’M WONDERING HOW
SUCCESS ME YOU MAY HAVE WITH A
COUNTRY LIKE CHINA THAT’S
ALREADY THROWN SOME COLD WATER
ON THE IDEA OF CRYPTO’S THERE
AND WHERE THEY WANT ALMOST TOTAL
CONTROL OF WHAT HAPPENS WITH
YOUR FINANCES.
>> THAT’S WHY CHINA HAS
BANDED EFFECTIVELY
BECAUSE THEY REALIZE
THEY CAN’T CONTROL IT
AND THAT’S WHY PLACES
LIKE THE UNITED STATES
WHERE WE CARE ABOUT
LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE
PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS,
FUNDAMENTALLY WE ARE SO
ALIGNED, BUT WHAT WE
HAVE SEEN IS EL SALVADOR
DID MAKE THE CASH
BITCOIN LEGAL TENDER.
DAVID: HOW IS THAT WORKING OUT?
>> ONE MONTH FROM THE
DAY IT STARTED OVER 50%
OF THE POPULATION OF THE
COUNTRY HAD DOWNLOADED
BITCOIN SO IT’S EXCEEDED
MY WILDEST EXPECTATIONS,
BUT THE PRIMARY CURRENCY
IN EL SALVADOR IS THE
U.S. DOLLAR SO THERE WAS
NO CENTRAL BANK AND THEY
DON’T HAVE THE ABILITY
TO ISSUE THEIR OWN MONEY
SIMILAR TO ECUADOR AND
PANAMA.
THERE’S A NUMBER OF
COUNTRIES THAT RUN
SOLELY ON THE DOLLAR AND
SO YOU DON’T HAVE A
CENTRAL BANK EFFECTIVELY
IN THE WAY.
DAVID: DO YOU NOW HAVE THOUGH A
CASE MODEL THAT YOU CAN PRESENT
TO OTHER COUNTRIES AND SAY IT
WORKS HERE AND IT CAN WORK THERE
AS WELL?
>> YES, I WAS WITH THE
PRESIDENT OF ECUADOR,
PANAMA, GUATEMALA
ACCOMPANIED DAYS AGO AND
I HAVE 30 OF THE
PRESIDENTS IN LINE.
RIGHT NOW THERE IS SO
MUCH INTEREST AND
BECAUSE OF HOW
SUCCESSFUL EL SALVADOR
HAS BEEN, PEOPLE ARE
CURIOUS.
I’M NOT GOING TO TELL
THEM WHAT TO DO, BUT I’M
GIVING THEM INFORMATION.
DAVID: THESE ARE ITSY-BITSY AT
ECONOMIES@COMPARED TO THE UNITED
STATES OR OTHER EUROPEAN
COUNTRIES.
IS THERE ANY-- IS IT
JUST UNIQUE TO THE SIZE
OF THESE COUNTRIES, THE
SMALL SIZE OF VALUE
ECONOMIES?
>> THE FIRST MOVERS ARE
TYPICALLY THOSE THAT ARE
MORE NIMBLE AND WHERE
THEY NEED IS GREATER.
THE BIGGER YOU GET YOU
DON’T NEED TO BE FIRST,
YOU CAN WATCH AND SEE
HOW IT’S WORKED
ELSEWHERE AND THEN YOU
HAVE THE PLEASURE OF
SAYING THIS REALLY WORKS
LET’S DO SOMETHING.
SMALLER PLACES BENEFIT
MOST FROM MAKING BIG
MOVES.
DAVID: HAVE YOU SEEN ANY
INTEREST AT ALL ON THE PART OF
THE FED?
>> I WAS IN THE SENATE
YESTERDAY AND I’M
CONSTANTLY IN
CONVERSATION WITH
VARIOUS MEMBERS OF OUR
ELECTED OFFICIALS AND
CIVIL SERVANTS,
REGULATORS, EVERYONE AND
THERE IS GENUINE
INTEREST.
THE REAL ISSUE I SEE IS
THAT MOST PEOPLE JUST
DON’T KNOW ENOUGH SO THE
MAIN THING I’M TACKLING
IS EDUCATION, EDUCATION,
EDUCATION BECAUSE THE
MORE INFORMED EVERYONE
IS THE MORE SENSIBLE THE
DECISIONS THEY WILL MAKE
THAT-- THIS IS OUR
FUTURE, THERE IS A
FUTURE ECONOMY EMERGING
AND OUR FUTURE IS GOING
TO BE IMPACTED BY THE
DECISIONS WE MAKE AND I
PRAY WE MAKE GOOD
DECISIONS FOR OUR
COLLECTIVE BEST
INTERESTS.
DAVID: IS-- WILL CRYPTO’S TAKE
OVER THE U.S. CURRENCY OR WILL
THEY JUST A SLIDE SIDE-BY-SIDE
WITH U.S. CURRENCIES?
>> A PARALLEL ECONOMY,
SIDE-BY-SIDE.
THIS IS JUST WHAT THE
BENEFITS OF WHAT
TECHNOLOGY IS A DOING,
CREATING ALTERNATIVES
AND I DON’T BELIEVE IT’S
THREATENING THE U.S.
DOLLAR.
I WAS ALSO THE FOUNDER
OF TETHER WHERE WE
CREATED THE U.S. DIGITAL
DOLLAR AND IT’S DOING
$100 BILLION A DAY IN
TRANSACTIONAL VOLUME SO
GOVERNMENTS ARE LOOKING
AT IT, SAYING THIS
TECHNOLOGY CAN ENHANCE
OUR MONETARY SYSTEM.