Miami Mayor Suarez Tells Davos He Still Takes Salary in Bitcoin

Nathan Crooks and Madison Mills, Bloomberg News

Francis Suarez, mayor of Miami, speaks during the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami, Florida, U.S., on Friday, June 4, 2021. The biggest Bitcoin event in the world brings a sold-out crowd of 12,000 attendees and thousands more to Miami for a two-day conference. , Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said he’s still taking his city salary in Bitcoin even after a rout that sent the cryptocurrency down almost 40% over the past two months.

“I will note, for the record, that it’s not my only salary,” he told a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday. “It’s a different decision than if a person was deciding to take their salary in Bitcoin if it was the only source of income for them.”

The Republican mayor, who’s been seeking to promote Miami as a cryptocurrency and tech center, said he’s more focused on the utility of the coin and that the collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin hadn’t changed his vision for fostering the crypto industry in the city. He first announced his plan to take his paycheck in Bitcoin last year and cautioned that people needed to be aware of the high risk and volatility involved with digital assets, in addition to the possibility of high rewards.

Suarez, a 44-year-old lawyer, stressed the difference that exists between protecting people from fraud, and protecting people from losses. He pointed to the “tremendous volatility” that exists in tech stocks as well.

“Government has had a tendency over time to try and protect people against losses, and you can’t protect people against losses,” he said. “That’s the American system. That’s what makes investing. That’s the risk component to winning as well.”

Suarez, who also heads the US Conference of Mayors, said in a separate interview that it was flattering to have his name raised as possible US presidential candidate in an editorial published this week by Washington Post commentator George Will. He noted that the US had never seen a president ascend from a mayoralty.

“We’ve also never had a Hispanic president, and I think that’s something that the country would love to see at some point,” said Suarez, the son of Cuban immigrants. “As you see a generational change from the baby boomer generation to my generation, you also wonder what party is going to really do a good job of messaging to connect with that generation.”

While Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a fellow Republican, is frequently mentioned as a possible presidential candidate and has raised his profile by taking on “cultural war” issues popular with his base, Suarez has bridged the partisan divide on many hot-button issues in recent weeks, saying he believed in nurturing the LGBTQ community in Miami and calling for increased efforts to fight global climate change.

Read More: Miami’s Three Mayors Bridge Partisan Divide With Climate Stance