A cheeky remark by influential economist Peter Schiff spawned a new cryptocurrency on Sunday that already has millions added to its capitalization.
What happened: The creators of the cryptocurrency USAcoin (USACOIN) were inspired by Schiff, who advised the U.S. government to consider the possibility of a strategic USAcoin reserve rather than a Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) reserve.
As of this writing, the coin has a market valuation of roughly $2.80 million, with over $7 million in trading volume in the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
Reacting to the new coin, Schiff clarified that he doesn't endorse it. "My post was sarcastic—don't buy it," the staunch Bitcoin critic said. However, he stood by the idea behind proposing such a cryptocurrency.
Someone actually created a #USAcoin. My post was sarcastic—don't buy it. However, my point was that if the U.S. government created such a token and committed to building a strategic USAcoin reserve, it would make more sense than stockpiling #Bitcoin. That part wasn't a joke.
— Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) December 22, 2024
On Saturday, Schiff mooted the idea of a new government-backed cryptocurrency with a supply limit of 21 million, similar to Bitcoin, but one that has value and can be utilized for payments.
No prizes for guessing the new USAcoin also shows a supply cap of 21 million but was yet to be validated.
Instead of creating a #Bitcoin strategic reserve, the U.S. could save a lot of money by creating #USAcoin. Just like Bitcoin, the supply can be capped at 21 million, but with an upgraded blockchain to make USAcoin actually viable for use in payments. This way we can all get rich.
— Peter Schiff (@PeterSchiff) December 21, 2024
See Also: MicroStrategy's Aggressive Bitcoin Strategy Raises Eyebrows In Crypto Community
Why It Matters: Schiff has blasted the idea of a strategic Bitcoin reserve, going to the extent of calling it "treason" and the "worst monetary mistake" the U.S. could make. He argued that Bitcoin is not a viable reserve asset due to its market volatility.
A gold advocate, Schiff strongly opposes Bitcoin, stating that it has no fundamental value and was destined to fail.
While Schiff admitted to regretting not buying Bitcoin when it was around $1, he emphasized that this doesn't mean he would buy it now.
Price Action: At the time of writing, Bitcoin was exchanging hands at $93,808.60, down 3.16% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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