In a recent revelation, New York Mayor, Eric Adams, has come to public attention in regards to his crypto holdings. Notably, he will have to amend his financial disclosure forms to include his ownership of cryptocurrencies.
Sources reveal that crypto holdings of Adams came to public attention after media highlighted a discrepancy in the mandatory financial disclosure form. As witnessed in the form which was filed with the city Conflicts of Interest Board, Adams opted ‘no’ investments in Bitcoin and Ethereum.
According to local media reports, after taking office, Mayor Adams declared he converted his first three paychecks into Bitcoin and Ethereum and that the paychecks totaled approximately $30,000. The media agencies then questioned why the mayor responded “no” to the question regarding ownership of securities and cryptocurrencies valued at $1,000 or more in the disclosure form.
Responding to this, Fabien Levy, the mayor’s spokesperson, explained that Adams misunderstood the question and that’s why he did not include his crypto holdings. Levy added that Afams believed he only needed to report securities, not currencies.
The financial form asks to report the value of crypto holdings at the end of last year. Despite a market meltdown, Adams held crypto in the last quarter of the year. Adams has been an advocate of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, and has shown a willingness to embrace them.
Last year, Adams had received significant attention when he wanted his paychecks in Bitcoin and Ethereum, and converted fiat into crypto via Coinbase. The mayor’s positive stance also led to the initiation of NYCCoin, in his attempt to make New York City more crypto-friendly. However, the coin hasn’t performed up to the mark and has lost 95% of its value since May 2022.
Additionally, Adams gained publicity for opposing New York’s crypto mining bill which banned mining in the district for next two years. He argued that imposing restrictions on proof-of-work mining would hinder the city’s carbon-neutral goals and had urged regulators to establish goals rather than implementing bans.
Simultaneously, sources reported that two of Adam’s close people, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Phil Banks and senior adviser Timothy Pearson, correctly disclosed their Bitcoin and Ethereum investments. In their annual financial disclosures, Banks and Pearson specified the Dollar value of their holdings.
In the forms, Pearson revealed owning less than 5% of Bitcoin stake valued at a minimum of $60,000 at the end of 2022. Banks declared holdings of at least $6,000 in Bitcoin and at least $5,000 in Ethereum.
Keeping up with the norms, Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who has been one of biggest advocates of crypto, also disclosed his family’s investment in Bitcoin, amounting to between $100,001 and $250,000, which has sparked a debate regarding potential conflicts of interest.
Notably, following the discrepancies in fillings by Adams, media reports sparked concerns of corruption and ill means. As a rising trend, several reports have flared concerns and news of government officials being involved in crypto scams and such activities.
