Crypto Leaders Urging Trump to Create Federal Bitcoin Reserve – Reports
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MOSCOW, November 27 (Sputnik) – Leaders of the crypto industry have been calling for US President-elect Donald Trump to create a national reserve of bitcoin digital currency that could help repay the US federal debt, the Washington Post newspaper reported on Wednesday. Economists and fiscal experts are wary of this idea, saying that it carries significant risks. They argue that the bitcoin exchange rate is extremely volatile, putting taxpayers’ money at risk if the government acquires bitcoin at its current, near-record high and its value ultimately falls. Bitcoin passed $99,000 on November 22 to trade at a new record high. Any plan to fund purchases of cryptocurrency with public money could end up increasing the national debt, as the US government may need to borrow some of the funds on which it would later have to pay interest. 
AnalysisAnalyst Warns Dollar at Risk as Bitcoin Hits All-Time High With Trump’s Support12 November, 10:51 GMTData provided by Arkham Intelligence, a firm that tracks information on cryptocurrency ownership, reportedly shows that the US government already owns just under $20 billion in bitcoin, seized primarily from criminals. Federal officials occasionally sell bitcoin from these reserves, the Post reported. During the 2024 election campaign, Trump promised to keep all of that cryptocurrency and make it the “core” of a new strategic reserve. Trump’s return to the White House and the active support of the cryptocurrency lobby may bring major change to the regulation of digital assets in the US, marking the first time the crypto industry receives the open backing of a US administration. Republicans have also long discussed the possibility of creating a strategic bitcoin reserve.
