Silk Highway creator Ross Ulbricht took to social media Thursday night time to difficulty his first assertion after being granted a full pardon Wednesday, calling U.S. President Donald Trump “a person of his phrase.”
Ross Ulbricht Shares His First Phrases After Launch
Ulbricht, who based Silk Highway in 2011, has been serving a life sentence for working the darknet market since 2015.
“Thanks a lot, President Trump, for giving me this wonderful alternative,” Ulbricht says in a video posted to X Wednesday. “I’m so, so grateful to have my life again, to have my future again, to have this second likelihood.”
pic.twitter.com/pbqRh9spnk
— Ross Ulbricht (@RealRossU) January 24, 2025
“There’s so much to speak about, and I stay up for re-engaging with the free world,” Ulbricht mentioned, indicating he would take time within the fast future to reunite together with his household and start the therapeutic course of. “As soon as I’m feeling up for it,” he continued, “we’ll discuss once more.”
How Bitcoiners Reacted to Trump’s Pardon
Members of the Bitcoin group have lengthy campaigned for Ulbricht’s freedom, with Bitcoin enjoying a crucial position in Silk Highway’s historical past.
Lots of the illicit transactions utilized on Silk Highway concerned Bitcoin, with a big share of cash at the moment within the U.S. authorities’s possession stemming from Ulbricht’s operation.
The Austin, Texas, native beforehand held $12 million price of Bitcoin earlier than it was finally seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Present estimates place the aforementioned Bitcoin stash at about $18 billion, which might have made Ulbricht one of many wealthiest males worldwide.
Although the federal authorities largely condemned the cryptocurrency’s utilization on the positioning, it marked one of many first instances digital belongings have been used as a commonplace forex and ushered in a wave of discourse over the position of digital finance and its relationship with the standard banking system.
The manager order liberating Ulbricht is only one of many signed by Trump since his inauguration on January 20.
“I simply referred to as the mom of Ross William Ulbricht to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Motion… it was my pleasure to have simply signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross,” Trump mentioned in a January 21 Fact Social submit.
Members of the crypto group have expressed each optimism and skepticism of Trump’s relationship with digital belongings, although Bitcoin and different cryptocurrencies have rallied amid anticipated regulatory modifications affecting the sector within the U.S.
It’s unclear what position Ulbricht will play throughout the crypto business going ahead, if any.
The submit Ross Ulbricht Supplied Because of Donald Trump in First Assertion Following Pardon: “A Lot to Discuss About” appeared first on Cryptonews.