Why Eric Trump Wants to Make Big Banks 'Irrelevant' | CoinDesk Spotlight

Oct 21, 2025

Eric Trump, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of American Bitcoin, discusses his shift from real estate to crypto after being debanked. He shares insights on the practical benefits of blockchain in reducing banking frictions and his bullish outlook on Bitcoin's future value. Eric also teases his plans to tokenize Trump properties and emphasizes the importance of user experience in making banks irrelevant. He believes global crypto adoption will persist despite regulatory challenges and highlights the need for a balanced approach between CeFi and DeFi.

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ANECDOTE

Mortgage Mar-a-Lago To Buy Bitcoin

Michael Saylor urged Eric Trump to mortgage Mar-a-Lago and buy Bitcoin during a casual conversation.
Eric recounts Saylor's intense seriousness and willingness to push extreme advice to buy BTC.

ANECDOTE

Debanking Drove A Hard‑Asset Convert

Eric describes being a hard-assets guy who resisted crypto until his family was debanked and deplatformed.
That experience, plus conversations with Michael Saylor, pushed him to embrace cryptocurrency.

INSIGHT

Banks' Friction Makes Blockchain Compelling

Eric realized modern banks' processes can be replaced by faster, cheaper blockchain systems.
He highlights delays like 120-day mortgage KYC as examples of inefficient banking friction.

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Insights into the past, present and future of the crypto industry with Eric Trump.

Follow the podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Eric Trump, American Bitcoin co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, joins "CoinDesk Spotlight" to break down how being "de-banked" and the weaponization of the financial system pushed him into crypto. Plus, his journey from real estate to bitcoin mining and the vision for tokenizing Trump properties. And, he shares the story of Michael Saylor telling him to mortgage Mar-a-Lago to buy bitcoin.

- This content should not be construed or relied upon as investment advice. It is for entertainment and general information purposes. -

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Timestamps:

1:47 - Eric Trump's First Memory of Money 3:42 - How "Debanking" Led Eric Trump to Crypto 8:28 - The Danger of Hard Assets vs. Crypto's Liquidity 12:18 - 'Michael Saylor Told Me to Mortgage Mar-A-Lago for Bitcoin' 13:29 - Building American Bitcoin 16:32 - Eric Trump's $1 Million Bitcoin Prediction 20:17 - Why Eric Says the "Dam is Breaking" for Crypto Adoption 22:17 - Market Structure and Where Crypto Regulation Goes from Here 25:21 - Are Tariffs Impacting ABTC's Mining Operations? 27:00 - World Liberty Financial's DeFi Model 30:16 - USD1 & Financial Freedom in Developing Nations 36:52 - Tokenizing Trump Real Estate 38:41 - Taylor Swift Should Be Able to Tokenize Her Albums 41:26 - Eric Trump's Take on Stablecoins 45:09 - Who Are Eric Trump's Crypto Mentors? 51:39 - Is Barron Trump a Degen?

This episode was hosted by Jennifer Sanasie. “CoinDesk Spotlight” is produced by Sam Ewen, Jennifer Sanasie, Taylor Fleming and Victor Chen.