Donald Trump, the U.S. president-elect, has helped the bitcoin price surge to record highs this year with plans to establish a U.S. bitcoin strategic reserve.
The bitcoin price has doubled since its summer lows, soaring past $100,000 per bitcoin as the Federal Reserve is warned its “biggest nightmare” is coming true.
Now, as a leak reveals Russia could beat the U.S. to a bitcoin reserve, Trump has been pitched a “capital markets renaissance fueled” by bitcoin to “unlock trillions in wealth” by MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor.
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“A strategic digital asset policy can strengthen the U.S. dollar, neutralize the national debt, and position America as the global leader in the 21st-century digital economy,” Saylor wrote in a so-called “digital asset framework” that he posted to X.
The document outlines plans for a U.S. bitcoin reserve—predicted to generate $16 trillion to $81 trillion, offset the U.S. national debt that’s spiraled to just over $36 trillion this year and “solidify the U.S. dollar as the foundation of the 21st-century digital financial system.”
Last week, Trump confirmed he plans to establish a U.S. bitcoin reserve, telling CNBC he’d like the U.S. to create a bitcoin strategic reserve similar to its oil reserve.
In July, then Republican candidate Donald Trump promised to create a “strategic national bitcoin reserve” and predicted bitcoin could eclipse gold’s $16 trillion market capitalization during an appearance at the Bitcoin 2024 conference.
U.S. senator Cynthia Lummis has introduced a bitcoin reserve bill to Congress, suggesting the U.S. Treasury purchases 200,000 bitcoin every year until the reserve reaches one million bitcoin.
Among other eye-catching numbers, Saylor’s pitch envisions expanding “global digital capital markets from $2 trillion to $280 trillion, with U.S. investors capturing the majority of this wealth,” and driving “growth in digital assets (beyond bitcoin) from $1 trillion to $590 trillion, with the United States dominating this industry.”
As the bitcoin and crypto market booms, it will create “massive demand for U.S. Treasuries,” according to Saylor, referring to stablecoin issuer Tether’s huge U.S. Treasuries stockpile that’s helped it record profits of $10 billion in 2024.
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MicroStrategy, founded as a software company in pre-dot com bubble internet boom, has been transformed into what Saylor calls a “bitcoin treasury” company, outperforming the likes of stock market darling Nvidia as it funds its bitcoin buys with the sale of convertible notes and at-the-market share offerings.
MicroStrategy has ridden the bitcoin price boom to an all-time high valuation, far outpacing bitcoin itself as traders use the company’s stock as a bitcoin proxy and was this month inducted into the prestigious Nasdaq 100 index—expected to fuel further MicroStrategy stock gains.
“There’s a valuable lesson in Michael Saylor’s transformation on bitcoin, though it may not be what you expect,” Markus Thielen, the chief executive of 10x Research, wrote in an emailed note to clients, pointing to Saylor’s 2013 dismissal of bitcoin.
“In June 2021, former U.S. president Donald Trump voiced his skepticism about bitcoin, calling it ‘a scam.’ However, by the summer of 2024, Trump had become a strong advocate for bitcoin. It seems everyone has their tipping point when it comes to embracing bitcoin.”