As promised, Donald Trump has pardoned Ross Ulbricht, founder of the Silk Road e-commerce site. Sentenced to life imprisonment in 2015 for illegal purchases made on Silk Road, Ross Ulbricht remains adored in the Bitcoin community for having created the first shopping site to accept payment in this cryptocurrency. According to a Coinbase official, Ross holds a wallet containing hundreds of Bitcoin.
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Ross Ulbricht is free
Donald Trump made no mention of cryptocurrencies during his inauguration speech on January 20. For all that, the American president hasn’t forgotten his promises to players in the crypto ecosystem and is working hard to fulfill them. Donald Trump announced on his network Truth Social, have granted a full and unconditional pardon to Ross Ulbricht. The latter is known as the founder of Silk Road, the first e-commerce site to accept payment in Bitcoin.
I have just called Ross William Ulbricht’s mother to let her know that in her honor and that of the libertarian movement, which has supported me so ardently, I am pleased to sign a full and unconditional pardon for her son.
Donald Trump.
The release of Ross Ulbricht was a campaign promise of the new American president. While attending the Libertarian Party convention last May, Donald Trump promised to bring back Ross Ulbricht on his first day in office. A political movement advocating individual freedoms and a minimal role for government rejoiced on Twitter.
Ross Ulbricht, Bitcoin’s political prisoner
If he is considered by some to be a dangerous delinquent, Ross Ulbricht is celebrated as a pioneer in the Bitcoin community. In 2011, Ross Ulbricht has created Silk Roada totally free online marketplace. Although Bitcoin was unknown to the general public at the time, the majority of exchanges on Silk Road were settled in this cryptocurrency. Silk Road has helped put the spotlight on Bitcoin and its usefulness in financial transfers.
Taking advantage of the freedom and confidentiality guaranteed by Silk Road, some users bought drugs with Bitcoin. For example Ross Ulbricht was arrested in 2013 for illegal purchases made on his platform. Two years later, he was sentenced to double life and 40 years in prison without the possibility of parole. This heavy sentence raised several questions and support. Many observers saw this as a crackdown on Bitcoin.
Ross Ulbricht, a Bitcoin millionaire.
While Ross Ulbricht leaves prison, his Bitcoin holdings begin to be tracked. According to Conor GroganDirector of Product Strategy and Sales Operations for Coinbase, the wallet associated with the founder of Silk Road contains 430 Bitcoins worth around $47 million. According to him, these funds have not moved in 13 years. Nor are they among the 174,000 BTC seized from Silk Road-linked wallets by US authorities following the platform’s closure in 2013. It remains to be seen whether Ross Ulbricht still holds the key to his wallet.
Ross Ulbricht’s release is an important victory for the Bitcoin community. It’s also proof that the new president remains committed to his pledges to the crypto ecosystem. One of Trump’s key promises, and one on which he is particularly expected to deliver, is the strategic reserve in Bitcoin. Let’s hope he focuses on this instead of throwing memecoins with no use and no tomorrow.
I dream of a world where every citizen has total control over themselves, including their finances. I believe that Bitcoin is one of the tools that will achieve this revolution. Since 2019, I am learning about this cryptocurrency and spreading the word around.
