How Bitcoin divides the world

As Musk and his daughter have contrasting feelings over Trump’s victory, the world is on alert for Trump 2.0.

CHO WON-KYEONGThe author is a professor at UNIST and the head of the Global Industry-University Cooperation Center. In November 2023, Bitcoin advocate Javier Milei was elected president in Argentina. “Bitcoin is a movement to give currency back to the men who created the money,” he said. Just like the “kimchi premium” in Korea, the price of Bitcoin is abnormally high in Argentina because of the “Argentina premium.” It is due to the extreme inflation and consequent high demand for Bitcoin in the country.

Since Milei’s inauguration, the credit default swap (CDS), a measure of national credit risk, of the country notorious for defaults has fallen to its lowest level in more than four years. During his term in office, he lowered the benchmark interest rate from 133 percent to 35 percent, which makes the president increasingly popular among the public. The stock market responded with the highest rally ever. Latin America is known for having a special love for Bitcoin, including El Salvador, the first country in the world to designate Bitcoin into a legal currency.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump was re-elected as the 47th president earlier this month. He appeared at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference held in Tennessee in July. At that time, he mentioned a “strategic national Bitcoin stockpile.” The strategy was effective to appeal to the pro-crypto investors, who became a major force in the election. What will happen if Bitcoin is included in the strategic stockpile? Does it mean that Bitcoin could be treated at the level of gold or key currency?

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who donated more than $118 million to the America PAC supporting Trump’s election, is thrilled by soaring stock prices. While Tesla stock hit a new 52-week high, Bitcoin is at an all-time high. In 2021, Musk declared that customers would be able to purchase Tesla with Bitcoin. Unlike Musk, his transgender daughter is disheartened. She wants to leave America as Trump, who persecutes the LGBTQ, was re-elected. As Musk and his daughter have contrasting feelings over Trump’s victory, the world is on alert for Trump 2.0. Where is the world headed?