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Jack Dorsey’s Block has shifted its sights on furthering its Bitcoin mining schemes. The ex-Twitter CEO’s cryptocurrency firm appears to be moving with the current political winds, as Donald Trump’s incoming administration brings crypto plans to the table.
Block, which owns Square – a point-of-sale tech company – and Cash App, is set to move resources away from other projects to facilitate the initiative. It said that its “Web5” project, TBD, and streaming service, Tidal, will be part of the cuts.
TBD is effectively being canceled as a whole, while Tidal faces up to a quarter of its staff being laid off, as Dorsey wants to “build like a startup again”. Dorsey’s Block – then Square Inc. – bought majority ownership of the Jay-Z founded Tidal in 2021 for $297 million.
Meanwhile, TBD was intended to bring “decentralized identity and data storage to your applications”. Effectively, it was software that would put the user back in control of their data, rather than the company providing the service.
Bitcoin has risen considerably since November 5, 2024, as Donald Trump became president-elect. On the day of the election, Bitcoin sat at around $69, 000. On the morning of November 6, it had risen to around $75,000. At the time of writing it sits at $76, 128.41.
With expectations for Bitcoin to continue to grow in value – with Trump wanting it to hit $100,000 – Dorsey’s company shifting to mining efforts makes sense.
Mining, however, has been massively criticized as a huge power drain and putting strain on America’s power grids. In July, Trump did post to Truth Social – his own social platform – that the US would become “ENERGY DOMINANT!!!” as he promised a push for more support around crypto and mining.
Russia has recently banned mining, as it has become energy deficient.
Trump promises crypto-future as Dorsey moves resources to mining
In the lead-up to the election, Trump even launched his venture during the run-up to the election – after disparaging cryptocurrency in 2019. However, the 47th president has now embraced the tech.
I am not a fan of Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies, which are not money, and whose value is highly volatile and based on thin air. Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behavior, including drug trade and other illegal activity….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2019
World Liberty Financial (WLFI) has since sliced its fundraising goals by 90% according to Coindesk, bringing its lofty $300 million in token goals to $30 million.
Trump’s circle now includes Robert Kennedy Jr. and Elon Musk, who are massive proponents of crypto. Musk’s takeover of Twitter, now X, included Jack Dorsey as a key investor in the buyout.
However, next year’s administration plans to stockpile the US’ current crypto holdings. Most of this has accumulated after criminal arrests.
At a conference in July, Trump said, “If I am elected, it will be the policy of my administration… to keep 100% of all the Bitcoin the U.S. government currently holds or acquires into the future.”
He has also claimed that he wants “all the remaining Bitcoin to be MADE IN THE USA!!!” This came after a roundtable with Bitcoin representatives in June at his club, Mar-a-Lago. It’s unclear how this will happen, as anyone with the correct setup can mine Bitcoin.
The Block-backed Gridless recently set up Bitcoin mining operations in Kenya, Malawi, and Zambia.
Trump also plans to cut interest rates, which will make it cheaper to borrow money to put into cryptocurrency.
While Block has big plans for Bitcoin mining, it did miss its third-quarter revenue expectations but beat profit forecasts.
