Eric Adams Says NYC Will Bet Big On Cryptocurrency

NEW YORK CITY — Mayor-elect Eric Adams wants to make New York City "the center of the cryptocurrency industry" — and pledged in a tweet to take his first three paychecks in Bitcoin.

"In New York we always go big, so I'm going to take my first THREE paychecks in Bitcoin when I become mayor," Adams tweeted Thursday afternoon. "NYC is going to be the center of the cryptocurrency industry and other fast-growing, innovative industries! Just wait!"

But New York City doesn't have the ability to pay its politicians in anything other than U.S. Dollars, so Adams campaign spokesperson Evan Thies told Politico that the mayor-elect would convert his pay into Bitcoin "through an exchange."

Adams' statement was in response to a tweet from investor Anthony Pompliano, who asked "Who is going to be the first American politician to accept their salary in Bitcoin?"

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez responded to Pompliano saying he'd take his next paycheck "100% in bitcoin," prompting Adams' tweet.

"Touché," Suarez replied to Adams. "Congrats on the election and I look forward to the friendly competition in making our respective cities a crypto capital!"

Thursday's Twitter exchange wasn't the first time Adams has acknowledged Suarez's bet on cryptocurrency — in a Wednesday interview with Bloomberg Radio, Adams mentioned the Miami mayor's "MiamiCoin."

"He has a MiamiCoin that is doing very well — we're going to look in the direction to carry that out," Adams told Bloomberg, while saying he'll "look at what's preventing the growth of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in our city."