NYC Mayor Eric Adams Converts Paycheck in Cryptocurrency

New York City’s new mayor told reporters that his first paycheck will be automatically converted to cryptocurrency. 

QUICK FACTS:
  • New York newly minted Mayor Eric Adams announced that his first paycheck in his current position will be converted to cryptocurrency according to Reuters.
  • The conversion will take place via Coinbase Global, which is a currency trading platform using ethereum and bitcoin.
  • The mayor plans to take his first three paychecks into bitcoin and announced his plan to make the nation’s largest city the “center of the cryptocurrency industry.”
  • This news broke as Bitcoin topped $60,000 in a six-month high just weeks ago, according to Reuters Future of Money.
THE PRESS RELEASE:
  • “New York is the center of the world, and we want it to be the center of cryptocurrency and other financial innovations,” according to The Official Website of the City of New York. “Being on the forefront of such innovation will help us create jobs, improve our economy, and continue to be a magnet for talent from all over the globe.”
  • “From being the primary means by which we close both the digital and financial divide, technology continues to be the great equalizer, said New York City Chief Technology Officer Matt Fraser. “This step taken by the mayor provides a leading example of how we can empower people through tech with a more diverse set of options to manage their finances.”
BACKGROUND:
  • Adams’ salary as mayor of the nation’s largest city is $258,750 a year, and he would be converting roughly $5,900 to the two cryptocurrencies on a biweekly paycheck based on average tax withholding, according to The New York Post
  • Given Thursday exchange rates that check would convert to either .14 Bitcoin or 1.82 Ethereum though the mayor did not say how he was splitting the check between the two types of currencies.
  • Mayor Adams announced Last November, however currently the Federal Department of Labor does not allow municipal governments to pay their workers directly in cryptocurrency, so Adams has to receive it into his bank account before converting it.
  • Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has also announced that he would take his next paycheck in the digital currency.

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