While some investors may be worried about the prospect of a long crypto winter, Justin Sun, ambassador and a permanent representative from Grenada to the World Trade Organization and founder of the TRON blockchain, and Nayib Bukele, the President of El Salvador, are expressing confidence in the industry’s growth prospects.
Both Sun and Bukele announced that they would acquire Bitcoin at the rate of 1 BTC per day, in a move aimed at calming concerns about the stability of crypto following the collapse of the FTX exchange in November.
Bukele announced a commitment to purchase 1 BTC per day beginning on Nov. 17. Shortly after Bukele’s announcement, Sun supported the sentiment, tweeting, “We echo @nayibbukele’s initiative in buying #Bitcoin daily. We will also buy one #Bitcoin every day starting tomorrow.”
Sun and Bukele’s strategy of acquiring BTC on a set schedule rather than in reaction to market movement is known as dollar cost averaging. This strategy is used to acquire assets an investor believes will see an eventual increase in value. It signals confidence, regardless of market activity, in the asset, in this case Bitcoin.
Justin Sun’s Response to FTX
FTX’s bankruptcy filing and the fraud charges against its owner, Samuel Bankman-Fried, have sent shockwaves through the crypto and blockchain industry. The fallout of FTX’s demise has caused concern that many crypto investors will liquidate and possibly exit due to “FUD” or fear, uncertainty, and doubt.
However, for Justin Sun, while FTX provides an important learning opportunity for the industry, the exchange’s behaviour shouldn’t be conflated with the responsible practices of other exchanges and shouldn’t detract from the benefits of blockchain technology.
“If you survive in the next six months and pass this moment of panic, I think next year we will see a small bull market,” said Sun in a recent webinar for CoinDesk on empowering the next generation of blockchain leaders.
He went on to explain what made FTX an outlier, noting the unique way its reserves were handled, ultimately leading to the misappropriation of customer funds.
“I believe the FTX incident is a rare case in our industry,” said Sun, noting that all the major CeFi (centralized finance) players, such as Binance, Huobi, and Coinbase, maintain a 1:1 ratio of reserves to ensure that they can handle customer withdrawals. “FTX is the only major crypto exchange not holding this principle.”
The webinar went on to focus on Sun’s support of the next generation of developers through the TRON Academy, which will partner with universities to provide financial incentive and empowering education for promising young blockchain developers and startup projects that need seed capital. For Sun, the future of blockchain technology looks bright, with innovative new applications being developed in areas such as DeFi (decentralized finance), non-fungible tokens, and the metaverse.
El Salvador and Government Adoption of Crypto
Bukele’s announcement comes after the government of El Salvador became the first nation to accept Bitcoin as legal tender in June 2021. Since that time, El Salvador has purchased 2,381 BTC.
For Justin Sun, who also serves as ambassador and permanent representative of Grenada to the World Trade Organization, government receptiveness to crypto and blockchain technology is an important step in the future of the industry.
Sun helped Dominica partner with TRON DAO to adopt TRON as its national blockchain. The partnership will aim to establish TRON as the foundation of Dominica’s economic infrastructure, developing a smart contract platform to support a variety of financial services, including the acceptance of TRX, JST, and USDD as legal tender.
The partnership has also led to the launch of the first-ever national token, Dominica Coin (DMC), and the country’s first blockchain-based identification, Dominica Digital ID (DID). Both DMC and DID are designed to connect holders with government services, such as obtaining a passport, and to attract commerce and tourism, while leveraging virtual experiences made possible by the burgeoning metaverse.
Ultimately, Justin Sun remains bullish on crypto, continuing to invest his time and money in a variety of projects in the industry, with the hope of calming fears and concerns in the process.
