In July, the idea of turning Bitcoin into a strategic reserve within the United States began to circulate. This proposal became one of the most striking campaign promises of the country's president-elect, Donald Trump. However, there are numerous doubts about this step and not everyone agrees with going ahead.
Andreessen Horowitz general counsel and head of decentralization Miles Jennings says the plan is not a good idea. He believes it hurts taxpayers and favors large BTC holders. In a post on X, the executive underlined his view: “ A BTC strategic reserve is a transfer of wealth from the US government to Bitcoin holders ,” he explains.
He also points out that removing taxes on cryptocurrencies also constitutes a transfer of wealth to Bitcoin holders. This means that certain priorities that should be for entrepreneurs are now directed towards speculators, he says.
Overall, massive government purchases of BTC will enrich speculators at the expense of public funds. The latter considering that these purchases will inflate the value of the largest cryptocurrency. Meanwhile, eliminating taxes means that the government does not have access to speculators' profits to distribute to the innovators in the sector.
Will Bitcoin become a strategic reserve?
Another element discussed among the community has to do with the ways to convert Bitcoin into a US strategic reserve. Such initiatives generally require approval from Congress. However, there are those who think that Trump has the power to bypass approval through an executive order.
This is the position of Bitcoin Magazine CEO David Bailey. He believes that Trump can proceed directly with an executive order. With his signature, the country can begin a BTC adoption strategy similar to that of some firms such as MicroStrategy, Marathon and others. This consists of acquiring and storing Bitcoin in the same way as they do with gold.
It is important to note that proceeding by executive order would have limitations on purchase quantities. Basically, buying massive amounts of BTC would require approval from Congress. Thus, whether by Congress or executive order, the North American country seems to be moving towards the incorporation of BTC.
As already mentioned, the possible conversion of Bitcoin into the United States' strategic reserve will cause a sharp rise in price. This is without taking into account that other countries that emulate this nation in the economic aspect would also adopt this cryptocurrency. According to experts, the United States could buy 5% of all Bitcoin in circulation.
