Andrew Yang has stated that he would like to make New York City a hub for bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
He did so publicly and explicitly via his official Twitter profile, where he wrote:
“As mayor of NYC – the world’s financial capital – I would invest in making the city a hub for BTC and other cryptocurrencies”.
Yang is running for mayor of New York City in the next election, so this is in fact an election promise in its own right.
Last year he was running in the Democratic primary, which Joe Biden won, for President of the US, and this year he will be running to succeed Bill de Blasio.
De Blasio, also a Democrat, has been mayor of New York since 2014, so he can no longer run for office.
Besides Yang, there are several other Democrats running for the primary, but Yang seems to have the best chance according to the January polls.
It is therefore not at all unlikely that Andrew Yang will become the new mayor of New York City this year, so his words should be taken very carefully.
Andrew Yang, the candidate who loves Bitcoin
What’s more, Yang is a long-time bitcoiner and a well-known supporter of Bitcoin, so these promises of his seem sincere.
New York is still, to all intents and purposes, the world’s leading financial centre.
Moreover, New York State has long since tightened its financial regulations, so much so that several companies have chosen not to operate within the state.
Although Yang is not running for president of New York State, but for mayor of the city, he could still do something to induce several crypto companies to return to operate in the world’s leading financial centre.
For example, last year, when he was a candidate for the presidential primaries, he presented a proposal with a plan to regulate digital assets nationwide, and to promote voting on blockchain.
Although it is still too early to consider this a breakthrough, given the many unknowns that still exist in this regard, it is a clear sign that something is changing, or has already changed, in the relationship between traditional finance and cryptocurrencies.
