Binance's former chairman, Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, said that China is likely to be one of the first countries to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve, which could follow the plan proposed by the new US presidential administration.
Speaking at the Bitcoin MENA conference in Abu Dhabi on December 9, Zhao said that "smaller countries" may be the first to adopt a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve, but this change could be slow. He said China's stance on cryptocurrencies is "unpredictable" due to a lack of transparency from their government.
"Trump has not officially taken office yet, and the strategic Bitcoin reserve has not been activated. So I think we will watch the moves of other countries as soon as this actually happens," Zhao said.
Changpeng Zhao speaking at the Bitcoin MENA event in Abu Dhabi on December 9. Source: TinTucBitcoin
CZ, who grew up in China, said that if the country wanted to, it could "act quickly" on policies. However, he has not seen any evidence that the government is hoarding BTC, but he emphasized that building a strategic reserve is "inevitable":
"I would be very surprised if [the Chinese government] announced something and then implemented it - I would be less surprised if they accumulated first and then announced [...] It's time for them to do that because it's the only 'hard' asset."
Which country will be the first to build a BTC reserve?
Establishing a "national strategic BTC reserve" was one of the campaign promises of President-elect Donald Trump to delegates at a cryptocurrency conference in July. Critics of this plan argue that it would only benefit BTC holders as the price could rise if the US government buys and holds a million of these coins.
Zhao was released from a US federal prison in September. He had served four months in prison after pleading guilty to violating the country's anti-money laundering laws.
Under the agreement with Binance after resigning as CEO in November 2023, Zhao will not be involved in the management or operation of the cryptocurrency exchange in the future. The criminal conviction also restricts him from certain business activities, but he hinted that Trump may pardon him after taking office on January 20.
