The recent discussion about a US Bitcoin reserve has sparked a lively debate at the World Economic Forum in Davos. With Donald Trump back in the Oval Office, there's a fresh wave of enthusiasm for Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency industry in the US.
At the 2025 World Economic Forum in Davos, Bitcoin, memecoins, and the future of the crypto industry took center stage. This coincided perfectly with Trump’s political comeback. During the only session focused on cryptocurrency, industry leaders shared their optimistic views about the sector, even amid the excitement surrounding the launch of the Official Trump (TRUMP) token.
Brian Armstrong, the CEO of Coinbase, answered questions from Cointelegraph during the session. He made it clear that the impressive performance of the TRUMP memecoin wouldn’t derail efforts to create a Bitcoin (BTC) strategic reserve, which Trump endorsed in 2024.
Armstrong said, “I don’t think it undermined anything with the strategic Bitcoin reserve. That effort is still alive and well. Cynthia Lummis in the Senate is really pushing that idea.”
The idea for a Bitcoin reserve was brought up by Lummis, Trump, and MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Tennessee. Armstrong explained the proposal to those at the WEF session.
“There’s a proposal for the US government to start holding Bitcoin. Like many countries, the US holds reserves in various assets like gold, oil, or rare minerals like palladium,” he said. “Many governments hold gold, but I think they should hold Bitcoin because it’s essentially the new gold standard. You should hold assets that maintain value over time.”
Lesetja Kganyago, the governor of the South African Reserve Bank, was the only non-crypto panelist. He expressed doubts about the US stockpiling Bitcoin and questioned the benefits of such a move. He pointed out that South Africa is focusing more on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and blockchain utility rather than Bitcoin as a store of value.
“There’s a history to gold. There was once a gold standard. Currencies were pegged to gold. But if we use Bitcoin now, what about platinum? What about coal? Why don’t we hold strategic beef reserves or apple reserves? Why Bitcoin?” Kganyago asked.
Armstrong responded by reinforcing the core principles that Bitcoin advocates have been promoting. “Maybe it’s a new idea, but it’s clear that Bitcoin is a better form of money than gold. It’s provably scarce, just like gold, but it’s more portable and divisible. It has higher utility and was the best-performing asset of the last 10 years,” he stated.
He emphasized Bitcoin’s advantages over traditional reserve assets, suggesting that central banks might eventually hold more BTC than gold. “It might start with being 1% of their reserves, but over time, it could equal or exceed their gold reserves.”
A significant part of the session focused on the recent US elections and the influence of political donations and lobbying from the cryptocurrency sector. Anthony Scaramucci, founder of SkyBridge Capital, noted that the Democratic Party missed opportunities to engage in meaningful discussions about the future of the crypto industry.
“I was there when President Trump spoke at the Bitcoin conference. It was clear that if he won the election, things would change in the industry. I was surprised at the Democrats’ reluctance to understand what was really happening,” Scaramucci remarked.
He added, “If someone writes a history of this era, it’ll be about how Elizabeth Warren and Gary Gensler came together for some unknown reason and helped the Democrats lose the presidency, the House, and the Senate.”
Denelle Dixon, director of the Stellar Foundation, mentioned that the crypto industry recognized that regulatory actions in the US forced them to look for opportunities abroad. “The dollar is something that everyone wants. It’s in high demand. We couldn’t ignore what was happening in the United States, even if we didn’t like the regulatory environment,” she said.
Armstrong concluded by stating that “the Trump effect” is undeniable. He believes that the new presidency has given the cryptocurrency industry a sense of optimism and room to grow in the US.