DOGE head Elon Musk says Trump shouldn’t pardon Bitcoin Cash backer Roger Ver as he’s no longer a US citizen
2025-01-27
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Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) among other things, argued that Bitcoin Cash proponent and early Bitcoin investor Roger Ver shouldn't be given a presidential pardon.
"Roger Ver gave up his US citizenship. No pardon for Ver. Membership has its privileges," he posted on X.
Musk's view carries weight on this issue due to his close relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump. Last week, Trump pardoned Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht, a promise he had made on the campaign trail when attracting the support of the crypto industry.
Following Ulbricht's release, some members of the crypto community have called for other individuals to be pardoned, such as the developers of Tornado Cash, Virgil Griffith — who gave a talk about blockchain to North Korea — and Ver over his tax issues.
In April 2024, Ver was arrested in Spain and charged with alleged mail fraud, tax evasion and filing false tax returns. Ver allegedly concealed bitcoin ownership from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and caused the purported loss of $48 million, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Ver claims he's been "terrorized by rogue U.S. government agents who hate American freedom" for decades. After what he described as clashes with the U.S. government following a political run at the start of the millennium, he left the U.S. in 2006 and renounced his citizenship in 2014.
"Since then, the U.S. government has relentlessly pursued him with baseless charges of mail fraud, tax evasion, and false filings—retaliation for his outspoken criticism," he claims, arguing that he followed legal advice in filing his exit taxes.
Divided support among the community
While Ulbricht was quite widely supported across the crypto community — although he did have his detractors — Ver is more of a controversial figure. Having strongly backed the push for Bitcoin Cash, he fell out of favor with many in the Bitcoin community.
"You aren't an American any more. Remember when you renounced your citizenship?" wrote Casa CSO Jameson Lopp on X, echoing Musk's comment.
While some people expressed that they hadn't supported Ver in the crypto context, they still felt he was being unfairly prosecuted. "Whatever you think about Roger Ver he does not deserve life in prison," posted Simon Dixon, co-founder and CEO of Bnk To The Future.
Then there are those who have come out strongly in favor of him. Ver "is the victim of a long and reprehensible lawfare campaign going back decades," said Blockchain.com co-founder and CEO Peter Smith. "Mr President please bring him home and let this legendary pioneer and investor help make the USA the global leader in crypto!"
"Whatever you think about Roger, you cannot ignore his contributions to early Bitcoin, and you cannot support unjust abuses of power by the US, whether the target is a US citizen or not," said Kraken Co-founder and Chairman Jesse Powell, adding, "The 'no citizenship, no pardon' rhetoric is disgusting."
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