Industry leaders are reportedly seeking a seat on the long-awaited crypto advisory council of President-elect Donald Trump, which will be responsible for drafting regulatory policy and is expected to establish a strategic reserve for Bitcoin (BTC).
According to a Reuters report, Coinbase, Ripple Labs, and venture capital firm a16z are among the companies seeking to participate in this council. The council may be subsumed under the White House National Economic Council, but this is not certain, and it may also operate as an independent entity.
Speaking at the North American Blockchain Summit on November 21, Bitcoin advocate and Satoshi Action Fund co-founder Dennis Porter explained the importance of establishing a strategic reserve for Bitcoin in the United States:
"A wonderful way to protect us from outside influence — undue influence from foreign adversaries — is to participate in the market by buying and selling BTC, acting as a shock absorber for all the wonderful Bitcoin Miners we have in this country."
Porter went on to compare establishing a strategic reserve for Bitcoin to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the U.S. government's acquisition of Alaska in 1867 — an idea previously echoed by MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor.
"We bought these things for very cheap," Porter remarked, and argued that the U.S. has a similar opportunity today by embracing Bitcoin as a reserve asset before other nations beat the U.S. in this race.
Assets and liabilities of the U.S. government. Source: U.S. Department of the Treasury
The race for a Bitcoin strategic reserve
Senator Cynthia Lummis — who introduced a bill to establish a Bitcoin strategic reserve in the Senate earlier in 2024 — has recently argued that the Treasury Department should convert a portion of its gold holdings into Bitcoin to provide a foundation for a strategic reserve with the asset.
Bitcoin advocate and asset manager Anthony Pompliano also commented that the Bitcoin race between sovereign powers is unfolding in a recent appearance on Yahoo Finance on November 16, and called on the U.S. government to "Get as much BTC on the balance sheet as possible."
However, not all industry members are optimistic about a Bitcoin strategic reserve being established under the incoming Trump administration.
Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz previously stated that he believes a Bitcoin strategic reserve is unlikely to be established under a Trump administration, but also predicted a $500,000 price for BTC if a strategic reserve is established in the near future.
