Bitcoin, Politics, and Privacy

On this week’s Long Read Sunday, NLW reads two essays exploring the intersection of Bitcoin, crypto, and politics. The first, Red Coin Blue Coin: The New Politics of Exposure, looks at the rise of politically branded Bitcoin treasuries—from Michael Saylor’s Strategy to Trump Media’s $2 billion BTC bet—and asks whether investors are buying the coin or the campaign. The second, A Regulator’s Radical Defense of Privacy by Byron Gilliam, covers SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce’s surprising embrace of cypherpunk ideals and her challenge to the financial surveillance status quo.

Sources:

https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2025/08/01/red-coin-blue-coin-the-new-politics-of-exposure

https://blockworks.co/news/hester-peirce-defense-of-privacy

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