Eric Adams, a New Yorker, stated in a CNN interview that he believes schools should begin teaching crypto technology to their students.
These comments follow Adams' declaration that he would accept his first paycheck as New York City's mayor using bitcoin.
The incoming mayor has a policy platform that includes making the city a Bitcoin hub for the US crypto community.
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Eric Adams, the New York City Mayor-elect, will not be sworn in to office until 2022. However, he is already working on policy changes related to bitcoin and blockchains.
Adams said that schools should teach children cryptocurrency technology in an interview with CNN's "State of the Union". This is to raise awareness of cryptocurrency and bitcoin among young people.
Adams stated that cryptocurrency was a new method of paying for goods or services. "We need to open schools to teach technology and to teach this new way to think when it comes to paying for goods or services."
It is not new to teach cryptocurrency in schools. Students from high schools all over the country are beginning to incorporate crypto topics into their education. Adams didn't specify the education level at which crypto would be included in his curriculum.
But, there are also criticisms of the move toward a crypto-friendly New York City. Jason Furman, a Harvard Professor and former member of the Council of Economic Advisors under Obama Administration, tweeted that Adams' crypto plan was "bad economic strategy" for NYC.
Furman stated that it also seemed like a conflict-of-interest. "Like a mayor saying, 'I'm going to buy a lot of Amazon stock. Then I'm going to put in place policies to benefit Amazon.
Adam made the statements regarding crypto in schools a few days following a tweet thread from crypto financier Anthony Pompliano in which he stated that he would accept three of his first three bitcoin mayor payments. Adams tried to surpass Miami's mayor Francis Suarez who had previously stated that he would accept his next pay in bitcoin as part of his ongoing platform for making the Big Apple a hub for innovation and crypto.
Adams also answered Adams' question about whether he would encourage New York City merchants adopt cryptocurrency in their transactions. He said, "We are going look at it, but we are going cautiously." It is going to be done right."
