Trump Pardons Bitcoin Legend Ross Ulbricht: Why It Matters

On the second day of his second presidential term, US President Donald J. Trump issued a full and unconditional pardon for Ross William Ulbricht, a key figure in early Bitcoin history and the former operator of the now-defunct Silk Road marketplace. The move has ignited a wave of celebration among the community, which long viewed Ulbricht’s life sentences as emblematic of excessive punishment for a nonviolent, first-time offender.

“I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbricht to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross. The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous,” Trump posted via Truth Social.

Ulbricht had been serving two life terms plus 40 years on charges related to his role in creating Silk Road, an online marketplace that leveraged Bitcoin as its primary payment method. Supporters say the heavy sentence was an attempt to target both Silk Road and BTC during the early days, when regulators and politicians were still grappling with the technology’s disruptive potential.

The pardon fulfills a promise Trump made at the Bitcoin 2024 conference, where he pledged to free Ulbricht if re-elected. Vijay Boyapati, author of “The Bullish Case for Bitcoin,” underscored Ulbricht’s importance to early Bitcoin adopters. In a post on X, Boyapati explained, “Newcomers to Bitcoin may not understand why old timers care so much about Ross Ulbricht. […] He embodied the ethos of early Bitcoin more than anyone. He was an entrepreneur who created a thriving marketplace.”

He further argues that Ulricht believed in “radical freedom, including the freedom to trade anything with anyone else so long as it was peaceful and voluntary. He regularly wrote about his views on freedom and why he built the first truly successful Bitcoin business – the Silk Road. He wanted to create a better world and believed in his principles deeply.”

Boyapati added that, in the early days, many Bitcoin enthusiasts felt Ulbricht’s punishment was unjust—“like they were locking up one of our own out of spite for what we all believed was a peaceful revolution.” He also reminded newcomers to “never forget there was a deeper purpose here,” beyond Bitcoin’s price gains, pointing to the community’s original ideals of libertarian freedom.

The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

The pardon raises fresh speculation that Trump may follow through on another campaign pledge: establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR). During the 2024 conference, he floated the idea of transferring all BTC seized by law enforcement into a national stockpile. With the Ulbricht promise now kept, some in the community expect the SBR initiative to surface next.

On Polymarket, the odds for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) jumped from 28% to as high as 44% following the news. Notably, the odds were even higher on Inauguration Day, reaching 59%. However, since President Trump has not yet issued a crypto executive order, the odds had plummeted to as low as 28% prior to the pardon of Ross Ulbricht.

A widely followed crypto analyst known as Byzantine General posted on X: “The fact that he kept his promise with Ross is a good sign IMO that he’s going to follow through with supporting crypto.”

David Bailey, CEO of BTC Inc and an influential figure in turning Trump’s stance pro-Bitcoin, also hinted that more crypto-focused actions are likely: “Tonight is about Ross but I’ll share this since I’m getting a ton of questions: I’m still expecting dedicated bitcoin+crypto EOs in coming days. I don’t know what they say or exactly when they drop. I also fully expect the President to deliver on the SBR in his first 100 days.”

At press time, BTC traded at $105,558.