As of April 30, Trump gave an interview on CNBC where he freely admitted to bashing the current financial order while underscoring the prospects of digital valuables. Eric Trump, the Executive Vice President at the Trump Organization and the son of U.S. President Donald Trump, revealed the warning he gave to global banks about adopting cryptocurrencies.
Critique of the Established Framework
In the course of an interview, Trump issued a striking critique of the modern financial system, proclaiming, “The modern financial system is broken; it’s slow; it’s expensive.” He added how the banking system is unfairly set to “trim the ultra-wealthy.” It appears that Trump’s perceived inadequacies of traditional finance compelled him to deal with digital assets, remarking, “It forced me into the crypto world.” Trump’s warning was stark: if banking does not change, “And I’m telling you, if the banks don’t watch what’s coming, they’re going to be extinct in 10 years.”
SWIFT Labeled as a ‘Catastrophe’
As Trump warned financial institutions to pay attention to developments in the crypto space, he simultaneously argued for the revolutionary potential of the latter’s underlying blockchain technology to transform traditional finance for the better. Specifically, Trump pointed out the shortcomings of cross-border solutions like SWIFT, which has been globally renowned for its messaging system but criticized for its slow and costly transaction speed, as a prime example. Trump stated that “there’s nothing that can be done on blockchain that can’t be done better than the way that the current financial institutions are working.”
SWIFT is literally a catastrophe.” He maintained the position that traditional payment systems such as SWIFT will lose their market share due to the emergence of crypto and other decentralized substitutes. He explained efficient transactions of digital cryptocurrencies and said, “You can open up a DeFi [decentralized finance] app right now, you can open up any cryptocurrency app, and you can send money, wallet to wallet, in a split second. It’s free, and it’s not variable.”
Banks Push Back Amid Bullish Sentiment
Amid all this talk of cryptocurrencies, global banks are pushing back, adopting new technologies critical for their operations. Italian banks have led the charge, strongly opposing the adoption of policies some crypto industry leaders hope will soon be made reality. One lamented the growth of stablecoins as well as investment in Bitcoins branded traditional. Despite this, a lot of other crypto industry leaders believe banks will adopt these technologies in less than two years, by 2025. According to other sources, this optimism doesn’t just come from nowhere, as governments, including the one in charge in the United States, are believed to be working on policies that support the use of cryptocurrency designed to provide clearer guidelines vital for smoother operations.
Absence of Forethought Flawless Predictions
The preemptive prognosis of Trump foretelling the potential demise of banks seems to fit the narrative of other rather over-the-top estimations made by him in the past regarding cryptocurrency. Eric Trump is said to have made a rather unlikely claim in December 2024 that Bitcoin would one day reach one million dollars for a single coin. He also claimed that by that time, governments and other global bodies would have no choice but to embrace the digital currency if they want to remain relevant in the world of digital assets.
Promotion of Stablecoin and Alleged Relationships
Trump’s comments concerning international banks and the adoption of cryptocurrency in the April 30 interview ensued a few days after he publicly endorsed USD1, a new stablecoin said to be backed by the Trump family. USD1 is set to a circulating supply of 1:1 with USD and was launched in March 2025. It is said to be “100% backed by short-term US government treasuries, US dollar deposits, and other cash equivalents.” This stablecoin is operating on the BNB Chain, a blockchain project started by the Binance Cryptocurrency Exchange. Due to connections with BNB Chain, this has been the subject of controversy for the supposed connection of Binance and the Trump family. In mid-March, the Wall Street Journal reported an alleged deal between Binance and Trump’s family, which supposedly included a stake in a crypto business deal to allow Binance.US to resume operations in the United States. Reportedly, both President Trump and Changpeng Zhao, the former CEO of Binance, denied The Wall Street Journal narrative; however, recent public statements and posts by Eric Trump about endorsing the use of digital assets and affiliated stablecoins may deliberately draw more attention to those claims.
