Trump Proposes Creating a Cryptocurrency Reserve: Which Assets He Chose and Why It Caused Controversy
Date: 2025-03-05 Author: Oliver Abernathy Categories: CRYPTO PAYMENTS
The list includes Solana (SOL), Ripple's XRP, and Cardano (ADA). He later clarified that Bitcoin, Ethereum, and "other significant cryptocurrencies" were also added.
The market responded to this news with growth, increasing the total capitalization of cryptocurrencies by 12% by Monday morning. Bitcoin and Ethereum added 7%, SOL and XRP rose by 18%, and the price of ADA soared by 60%. However, by March 4, all growth was leveled out: market capitalization fell by 13%, BTC lost 9%, ETH - 13%, and ADA collapsed by 20%. Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the only growing coin was Pi (PI), which added 4%.
The choice of cryptocurrencies has caused mixed reactions. According to Grayscale research director Zach Pandl, this decision reflects the trend towards diversifying investment portfolios. He noted that investors want to expand the range of assets, as in traditional financial instruments.
However, many experts believe that the inclusion of several cryptocurrencies is unjustified. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that the only logical candidate is Bitcoin. He emphasized that BTC is the simplest and most reliable option for the state reserve.
Politicians are also skeptical. Mintable NFT platform co-founder Zach Burks emphasized that without the approval of Congress and the Senate, Trump's initiative will remain just a theory. Investor Peter Schiff criticized the inclusion of XRP, saying that he does not see the point.
Some experts believe that Trump's statement could be a tactical move. Taproot Wizards co-founder Udi Wertheimer suggested that the president could offer obviously controversial assets in order to later abandon them, having negotiated more favorable conditions for Bitcoin.
Discussion of a crypto reserve at the state level is considered a positive signal for the industry. BRN analyst Valentin Fournier noted that this supports the bullish sentiment in the market, and Bernstein predicts BTC growth to $200 thousand.
However, experts warn of the risks of insider trading. Jeff Park from Bitwise believes that the inclusion of altcoins that do not yet have a clear strategic significance could provoke speculation. Crypto analyst ZachXBT drew attention to the strange movements of funds associated with Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen: in January 2025, $109 million was transferred from his addresses to XRP, although these wallets had not been used for 6-7 years.
Additional questions are raised by the distribution of assets in DeFi. Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana are among the top in terms of deposits in decentralized applications, while ADA ranks only 18th, and XRP is not represented at all.
Finally, XRP's presence in the potential reserve may be explained by political factors - Ripple actively finances politicians, unlike Cardano. According to Chinese journalist Colin Wu, Charles Hoskinson may have met with Trump or his entourage in late February.
Blockstream's head of security Samson Mow believes that Trump's choice could make the crypto reserve a tool for speculation. In his opinion, if the US president gets the opportunity to include any coins in the reserve, this opens the way for pressure from lobbyists and insiders.
