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A company owned by Donald Trump is selling a limited run of $500 sneakers naming the former president and current Republican nominee the “Crypto President” as he continues his outreach to cryptocurrency fans.
Just 1,000 pairs of the “Bitcoin orange” high-tops are being sold by CIC Ventures LLC, a company that says it has nothing to do with the former president’s political campaign. Another 4,000 pairs are being sold in “luxurious black” and cost $299. CIC Ventures is listed as being owned fully by Trump on his 2023 financial disclosure.
“These exclusive sneakers celebrate the future of finance and the leadership of President Trump, boldly emblazoned with a prominent Bitcoin symbol,” the sneakers’ description says. “Perfect for crypto enthusiasts and Trump supporters alike, these limited-edition shoes are a must-have.”
The sneakers’ release comes just days after the former president spoke at the Bitcoin onference in Nashville, Tennessee, where he fully embraced the crypto lobby. While there, he promised to establish a strategic national Bitcoin reserve if he is elected president and reaffirmed his stance that the U.S. must emerge as a crypto capital and superpower in the world. He also claimed Bitcoin, the 9th most valuable asset in the world, may one day surpass the market cap of gold.
“This [Bitcoin] is the steel industry of 100 years ago,” he said. It’s a major turn-around from his beliefs just a few years ago, when he called Bitcoin a scam against the U.S. dollar and said crypto is “a disaster waiting to happen.”
Tech executives and crypto fans have started to embrace the former president this election cycle, seeing Trump as a much friendlier face than President Joe Biden or presumptive Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump’s vice presidential running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, is also a crypto-friendly leader who owns Bitcoin holdings that are valued at between $100,001 and $250,000.
Several prominent tech leaders, many of whom have ties to crypto, have endorsed or financially supported Trump recently through aligned political action committees. That includes Elon Musk, the Winklevoss twins, and the owners of Andreessen Horowitz — Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
“It’s a bitcoin play,” as “Shark Tank” star and Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban said earlier this month. Cuban noted that a Trump administration likely “makes it easier to operate a crypto business because of the inevitable, and required, changes” at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Bitcoin shoes may be Trump’s latest attempt to cash in on the sneaker-heads among his supporters, but certainly isn’t the first. CIC Ventures is the same company that debuted “FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT High-Tops” as part of the rush to cash-in from the attempted assassination of the former president, as well as “Never Surrender” and “Red Wave” shoes. Trump debuted the “Never Surrender” sneakers personally at “Sneaker Con” in February.
—Vinamrata Chaturvedi contributed to this story