Exclusive interview with BitMart: After attending the Trump dinner, I think the United States is worth betting on

Jessy, Golden Finance

On May 22, local time, the Trump dinner was held as scheduled at Trump's private estate, Mar-a-Lago, in Washington. The top 220 Trump token holders participated in the dinner at the snapshot on May 12. This dinner is not only a crypto feast, but also brings together practitioners from all walks of life.

Face-to-face communication with the president, a good external publicity, and establishing connections with other top investors may be the original intentions of the participants in this dinner.

Of course, the high-profile dinner also caused Trump, who was already controversial after taking office, to fall into the storm of public opinion again. On the day of the dinner, many protesters gathered outside the venue, and critics called it "the president's degenerate journey of the money-making competition."

But for the Trump coin investors who really participated in it, these voices from the outside world are not important to them. Especially for practitioners in the crypto industry, face-to-face communication with Trump is more inspiring. As one of the top 25 Trump token holders, Sheldon, the founder of BitMart, not only attended the dinner that day, but also attended the VIP reception before the dinner. The face-to-face contact with Trump also gave him more confidence in the development of the crypto industry in the United States. For industry practitioners, confidence is more precious than gold.

Trump Dinner on the Day (Picture from Sheldon)

The following is the interview transcript between Jinse Finance and Sheldon:

Jinse Finance: Please introduce BitMart and yourself.

Sheldon: BitMart is a global digital currency exchange. It was established in 2017 and officially launched on March 15, 2018. It has been running for more than 7 years. I am Sheldon, the founder of BitMart. I entered the crypto industry in 2013. That year, I was a sophomore. It was also in that year that I did my first project. After that, I continued to do technical development in the blockchain industry. After graduating from graduate school in 2017, I started to work on the exchange.

Golden Finance: Please describe the specific situation on the day of the dinner, such as how long in advance did you arrive at the venue, what preparations did you make, and whether you saw familiar people at the venue?

Sheldon: I am based in New York on a daily basis. I arrived in Washington on the 21st. The event started on the 22nd. As a VIP, I entered the venue half an hour in advance, that is, at 5 pm local time on the 22nd. The security check was very strict. Bags, gifts, camera equipment larger than mobile phone cameras, and other prohibited items were not allowed to be brought in. The security level of this event is very high. For example, the windows of the small conference room are blocked by curtains, which should be to prevent shooting.

When you enter the event site, you will see many decorations with Trump's personal elements, such as the iconic news photo of "Fight Fight", Trump's hat and other gifts.

Of the top 25 VIPs, 60%-70% are Asian faces, including Koreans and Japanese, not all Chinese. I know two of them, one is Sun Yuchen, the founder of TRON, and the other is the CEO of Wintermute.

Golden Finance: What did Trump say during the VIP reception?

Sheldon: Trump actually stayed in the VIP room for about 5 to 10 minutes, mainly to show everyone some directional issues in the formulation of blockchain policies in the United States, including the hope to bring more relaxed development opportunities to the blockchain industry in the United States and let the United States take the lead in the encryption industry. It is mainly some directional and encouraging words.

Golden Finance: How much value of Trump tokens did you buy before the snapshot? Are these tokens still held? What is your understanding of Trump tokens?

Sheldon: About 10 million US dollars of Trump tokens were purchased before the snapshot. Everyone has different trading strategies, so it is not convenient to disclose the holdings at present. My understanding of Trump coin itself has not changed. It is a fan token and a functional token. There may be changes in the future, and I will continue to pay attention.

Golden Finance: What was your original purpose and original intention for participating in the dinner?

Sheldon: First of all, Trump is one of the most influential people in the world, and he has a distinct personality. Second, as a presidential-level figure, he held a gathering for practitioners in the crypto industry. The quality of the participants gathered by his appeal must be different. I also came for the purpose of industry communication. In addition, the dinner also has a strong communication attribute.

Golden Finance: What is your judgment on the projects that are willing to spend Trump coins to participate in the dinner? What is their purpose for attending the dinner? What did you talk about with the dinner participants? What conclusions did you draw?

Sheldon: The participants are not all from the cryptocurrency circle. There are very few project parties in the industry. Basically, they are some large holders of Trump coins. There are also traditional finance, electric vehicle investment, e-commerce and other industries. The purpose of everyone participating in the event should be similar. We mainly talked about some topics such as encryption policies and industry development directions. My conclusion is that the United States' leading position in the encryption field will be difficult to shake in the short term. As a practitioner in the encryption industry, we should strengthen exchanges with American practitioners and policymakers.

Golden Finance: What impact will the conclusions drawn from this dinner have on BitMart's future development strategy?

Sheldon: I have been in New York for a long time and have a lot of exchanges with industry practitioners. This exchange will indeed have a certain impact on BitMart's future business direction. This involves some arrangements at the company's strategic level. It is still in the discussion stage and it is not convenient to talk about it in detail.

Golden Finance: Did anything interesting happen during the entire dinner? What is your overall feeling?

Sheldon: At the dinner, Trump's microphone had some problems at first. The microphone made a "puff" sound similar to that of a gunshot, and Trump jokingly said "My ears". The overall atmosphere was quite inspiring, and everyone was optimistic about the recognition and future prospects of the crypto field.

Golden Finance: After attending the dinner, do you have a more three-dimensional understanding of Trump himself?

Sheldon: He is in good spirits and looks like he is in his 50s or 60s. He can still work hard every day in his 80s, which is actually a great encouragement to everyone present.

Golden Finance: Trump's issuance of Trump coins and the holding of this dinner have actually received a lot of criticism from the outside world, saying that this is a kind of corruption. What do you think?

Sheldon: There will be controversy in the development of new technologies and new industries. Trump's issuance of coins is meaningful as long as it is not illegal. For example, Trump tokens can also help spread industry culture. But when it comes to transactions, investors are responsible for their own profits and losses, and it is difficult to judge.

This dinner is a private event of the president, and there are information disclosure requirements according to relevant regulations on presidential campaigns. There were some protests (not targeting the crypto industry) on the day of the dinner, and the industry information conveyed was positive for the crypto industry.

Golden Finance: As a VIP, you were also arranged to visit the White House. What was the specific process of the visit?

Sheldon: The White House trip was still scheduled, but the publicity was cancelled due to some concerns. The entire visit lasted about half an hour, mainly visiting the banquet hall, library, and some important reception rooms in the White House.

Golden Finance: After the entire event, what is your judgment on the development of the US crypto industry?

Sheldon: This trip to Washington has communicated with many practitioners and policymakers. I think for practitioners in the crypto industry, if they are competitive enough and are willing to have certain supervision in their business, then the United States is a good place to bet on now. But we also need to consider the continuity of policies, because after three and a half years, when the government changes, whether the relevant policies will continue, this aspect also needs to be considered.