Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s (NYC) latest mayor, is not particularly a crypto fan. At a time when the U.S. is taking brisk steps to make its market pro-crypto, encouraging banks to engage with digital assets, and allowing retail investors to experiment with the ecosystem, Mamdani has maintained a distance from adding crypto onto his investment portfolio.
Earlier this week former NYC mayor, Eric Adams launched a community-focussed crypto token called the NYC Token. He promoted the token as a means for open the funding avenues for the creators and charitable causes based in New York City.
Mamdani, at a press event, was questioned if he plans to purchase the NYC Token — and whether he had any exposure to crypto at all. Mamdani reportedly responded to these questions with a stark one-word answer — “No”.
Interestingly, the 34-year-old Democrat did not comment on the ongoing controversies surrounding Adams-backed NYC Token.
Here’s whats going on with the NYC Token
Adams launched the Solana-based NYC Token over the weekend at the Times Square. He said the token would be used to “‘fight antisemitism and anti-Americanism”.
His appeal to the community to come together and be part of his mission to create liquidity pools and support charities succeeded to hit the right nerves for some New Yorkers. Within hours of being launched, the token amassed a valuation of $600 billion.
The hype, however, went from bright to dim pretty soon after funds worth $4 million were moved internally from the token ecosystem, affecting liquidity. Rumours alleging that Adams’ has rug-pulled investors flooded the internet.
A statement from NYT Token’s X handle refuted the speculations claiming that they are “in it for the long haul”.
Adams did not address the situation personally as of now. He did, however, get boo’ed at the airport on January 14 that left him in angst.
Mamdani’s crypto-skeptic approach seems to be far from Adam’s stance — who set up NYC’s fir BTC office last year before losing his position to Mamdani in the elections. He also established his crypto council to promote blockchain research and development within the Big Apple.