Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre has made no secret of his penchant for cryptocurrency since the start of the campaign, which he wants to use to counter ever-increasing inflation, while he holds assets in bitcoin.
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Poilievre owns shares in units of Purpose Bitcoin, a Canada-based fund that holds cryptocurrencies and is traded on the stock exchange, according to his statement to the Federal Ethics Commissioner.
But according to his campaign team, encouraging Canadians to invest in this currency would not put him in a conflict of interest.
“Mr. Poilievre spoke with the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner before publicly commenting on bitcoin policies,” spokesman Anthony Koch said in an email to CTV News. “The Bureau cleared him to do so without issue.”
Interest in cryptocurrency would therefore not preclude the candidate from “commenting on cryptocurrencies in general, participating in debates and voting on public policy related to cryptocurrency regulation,” according to a November Office email. last and obtained by the media.
Recall that during his electoral race, the candidate proposed to ban the Bank of Canada from developing its own digital currency. He also argued that Canadians should be able to freely use alternative currencies for their payments.
The value of bitcoin and several cryptocurrencies has fallen lately, however, reigniting criticism from Mr. Poilievre’s opponents about it.
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