A fresh wave of speculation in the crypto market has been ignited with President Trump's appointment of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency.
During a recent discussion, Roundtable anchor, Rob Nelson, was joined by Armando Pantoja, futurist and crypto investor, and John Divine, Digital Asset OTC Trading at BlockFills , to explore the potential implications for altcoins and the broader crypto market.
"Elon Musk is good about leaving subtle hints at his affection for Dogecoin," said Armando Pantoja, referencing Musk's playful support for the token, including his Saturday Night Live appearance and social media activity. However, Pantoja stressed that Dogecoin's value, like much of crypto, is driven by hype rather than widespread utility. "No crypto on Earth is being used widely right now in really anything except speculation. Eventually, that will change greatly, and that's why these cryptos have so much potential," he said.
Dogecoin has surged more than 150% over the last month .
Pantoja predicted a resurgence of retail investors in the crypto market. "They've been absent in the crypto market for two years... They're going to open up their accounts, see these coins, and say, 'Well, I need to go back into that,'" he said, emphasizing how familiarity with assets like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu could drive market trends. He also pointed out the opportunity for investors to anticipate Musk's moves, which often serve as market catalysts.
Rob Nelson steered the conversation toward the broader implications of Trump's presidency, asking John Divine about the potential for growth in the crypto space under a pro-crypto administration. Divine highlighted Musk's focus on digital asset infrastructure. "It's just a matter of time before Platform X has a digital asset wallet function," he said, noting Musk's history of innovation, from PayPal to his current ventures.
Divine also discussed Trump's proposal to remove capital gains taxes for U.S.-based altcoin projects. "What that's going to do in the short term is drive a whole bunch of volume into those markets," he explained, pointing to projects like Algorand, Hedera, and Cardano as potential beneficiaries. He called the move a "massive catalyst" for the altcoin market.
As bitcoin stabilizes, Divine expects capital to flow into altcoins. "The writing's on the wall—Elon is all in on building out infrastructure for digital assets. Combine that with Trump's policy moves, and we're looking at some serious tailwinds for alts," he concluded.
