U.S. President Donald Trump said his pivot toward crypto was driven less by ideology than by geopolitics, arguing that if the United States did not embrace digital assets, China would. Speaking at a Monday press event at the White House to announce “Trump Accounts”—investment accounts for children under 18—Trump framed Bitcoin and crypto as a strategic industry the U.S. can’t afford to cede.

When asked whether the child-focused investment accounts would include Bitcoin, Trump responded that he became a “big crypto guy” because of competitive pressure from China. He also reiterated that he initially was not pro-crypto, but said he watched the sector grow into a “huge industry,” and later concluded that the U.S. needed to…