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Founder & CEO of Professional Capital Management, Anthony Pompliano has praised the new tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump on Wednesday, arguing that they highlight the inefficiencies of traditional financial systems and bolster the case for decentralized finance solutions like Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC).
What Happened: Speaking on a podcast, Pompliano linked the tariffs to broader economic shifts, while the crypto market faced significant declines amid fears of a global trade war sparked by the new policy.
Pompliano emphasized that the tariffs underscore the vulnerabilities of centralized banking systems, which he claims have been weaponized against businesses for political reasons.
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He recounted the Trump family’s experience with banks like Capital One, Chase, Bank of America and First Republic, which canceled their accounts during Donald Trump‘s presidency, a move he described as “political lawfare.”
This experience, shared by Eric Trump on the same broadcast, drove the family to embrace cryptocurrency.
“I realized the power that these banks had, and I realized how they were exerting that power, and they were canceling businesses all over our country,” Eric Trump said, explaining his shift toward crypto.
The tariffs, unveiled by Trump in a White House Rose Garden ceremony, impose a “reciprocal tariff rate” set at 50% of what trading partners charge the U.S., targeting countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and Sri Lanka with the steepest increases, while sparing Canada and Mexico.
Trump called the move “our Declaration of Economic Independence,” stating, “April 2nd will forever be remembered as the day American industry was reborn.”
However, the announcement triggered a sharp decline in crypto markets on Wednesday, with Bitcoin plunging to $82,400 levels from its all-time high of $108,786.
Major altcoins like Solana (CRYPTO: SOL), BNB (CRYPTO: BNB) and Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) also traded down 8-10% after the announcement.
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Why It Matters: Despite the market downturn, Pompliano sees the tariffs as a validation of crypto’s potential to address systemic financial issues.