Trump wants a crypto reserve, but Congress holds the bag

The digital assets industry witnessed a major plot twist and investors have been loving it. US President Donald Trump said the United States would soon establish a strategic crypto reserve that will feature Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA).

This declaration sent the crashing crypto market over the moon, regaining the crucial $3 trillion cumulative market cap. Its 24-hour trading volume jumped by a massive 196% to hit the $205 billion mark. However, even if Trump signs an executive order, the US Treasury won’t just start market buying BTC tomorrow. It still needs to get through Congress.

Trump’s crypto reserve plan

For the first time ever, a sitting US president acknowledged XRP, Solana, and Cardano alongside Bitcoin and Ethereum. Trump posted on his Truth Social account that “I will make sure the U.S. is the Crypto Capital of the World.” He even mentioned that the crypto reserve will elevate the industry after years of corrupt attacks by the Biden administration.

Meanwhile, a US Strategic crypto reserve is far from becoming a reality overnight. It needs to be accepted and passed through Congress first. The Parliament has to draft, debate, and pass legislation. The drafted bill will need to define which digital assets are included, their weightings, and the reason behind adding them to the reserve.

It doesn’t stop here, as the Council will seek funding sources needed to be allocated to build these reserves. Moreover, agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and Treasury are required to establish compliance rules.

Congress, not Trump, holds crypto reserve power

A US strategic crypto reserve faces legislative hurdles, as the creation of such stockpiles involves going through dark legal waters. The stance over the usage of cryptocurrencies looks widely separated globally. It is not yet defined properly or regulated even in the US financial framework.

US financial watchdogs have turned down their scrutiny around the digital assets linked companies after Trump took over the White House. The SEC recently dropped several cases or closed investigations filed under Gary Gensler’s regime. This includes Uniswap Labs, Coinbase, and Gemini cases. It looks like the regulators are ready to accept crypto’s validity and build some laws regulating it.

The US president had mentioned creating a crypto “reserve” instead of a “stockpile,” which sounds like a major win for the industry. As the term suggests, “stockpile” will hold crypto but not actively buy them. On the other hand, “reserve” will ensure regular Bitcoin, ETH, and other crypto buys like a digital gold standard.

Trump is set to host the first-ever White House Crypto Summit on March 7, 2025. It is expected that the meeting will see discussions over regulation and innovation around crypto. However, investors will be looking for more insights about the crypto reserve plans.

Bitcoin and the entire crypto market were in freefall last week after the trade war intensified. However, Trump’s announcement sent BTC back above $94K overnight. Bitcoin is now up by 8% in the last 24 hours.

Ripple’s XRP price is up by 18% in the past 24 hours. The recent spike has erased all the losses it took over the last 7 days. XRP is trading at an average price of $2.63 as of press time. Its 24-hour trading volume blasted by over 580% to stand at $21.8 billion.

Cardano turned up as the biggest gainer of the day after dealing with a long line of selling pressure. ADA price is up by 47% over the past day. ADA price has gone up by 15% on the year to date (YTD), suggesting a major breakout. Cardano is trading at an average price of $0.97 as of press time. Its 24-hour trading volume skyrocketed by 1800% to stand at $10.7 billion.

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