On March 2, 2025, Donald Trump made an announcement that instantly became a sensation in the financial world. He announced the launch of the U.S. Strategic Crypto Reserve, with five key digital coins: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), XRP (Ripple), Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA). Right after the announcement, the markets surged, and discussions took off among both beginners and experts.
What Is the U.S. Strategic Crypto Reserve?
The U.S. Strategic Crypto Reserve is a government-held stockpile of cryptocurrencies, created for storage and potential use of key digital assets. The USA already has similar reserves, like the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which helps stabilize the oil market during crises and supply disruptions.
Now, digital assets are also recognized as a strategic resource, not just an investment tool. The creation of this crypto reserve marks a shift in policy - cryptocurrency is no longer an outsider in the USA financial system but an essential part of it. Which cryptocurrencies are included in this reserve, and why are they important? Let’s take a closer look.
Statement by Donald Trump on the Creation of the U.S. Strategic Crypto Reserve. Source: truthsocial.com
Bitcoin (BTC) – Digital Gold
Bitcoin, launched in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto, is the first and most well-known cryptocurrency. Its limited supply of 21 million BTC makes it a scarce asset, often compared to gold. In the USA, Bitcoin is widely recognized as a store of value and an investment tool.
Advantages:
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Largest market capitalization: Bitcoin is the leader in the crypto market, with a market cap of $1.72 trillion, making it a reliable and stable asset.
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Global recognition: Bitcoin is used in many countries as a store of value and means of payment, attracting investments from major companies.
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Maximum decentralization: Unlike traditional financial systems, Bitcoin is not controlled by governments, banks, or corporations. Its network is maintained by independent nodes.
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Strong security: Bitcoin runs on the Proof-of-Work (PoW) algorithm, making its network one of the most secure. Hacking the blockchain would require an enormous amount of computing power, making it nearly impossible.
Bitcoin is highly reliable, but its transaction speed is relatively slow - each confirmation takes about 10 minutes, and fees can be high during network congestion. Unlike Ethereum and other blockchains, Bitcoin does not support smart contracts, focusing instead on simplicity and security.
Ethereum (ETH) – The Foundation of DeFi and NFT
Launched in 2015, Ethereum was the first cryptocurrency to support smart contracts, making it a key platform for decentralized finance (DeFi) and NFTs. Thousands of projects operate within its ecosystem, and its main digital asset, ETH, is used for transaction fees and blockchain interactions. Ethereum is rapidly growing in the USA and is backed by major Web3 companies.
Advantages:
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Market Cap: $263.05 billion – The second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, showing strong investor confidence, liquidity, and widespread adoption.
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Smart Contracts & DApps: Enables decentralized applications and self-executing contracts, removing intermediaries and powering a new financial ecosystem.
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Expansive Ecosystem: Supports DeFi, NFTs, and Layer 2 scaling solutions, offering diverse use cases and improving blockchain efficiency.
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PoS Transition: Switched from Proof-of-Work to Proof-of-Stake, reducing energy consumption by over 99%, making it more sustainable and scalable.
Ethereum continues to evolve, but high network demand results in expensive gas fees, especially compared to Solana and other faster blockchains.
XRP – Cryptocurrency for International Payments
XRP, created by Ripple in 2012, is designed for fast and easy payments. It is widely used in the financial sector, and Ripple itself is one of the largest blockchain companies in the USA. With its high transaction speed and low fees, XRP helps banks and payment systems process transfers faster and cheaper than traditional methods.
Advantages:
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Market capitalization: $140.84 billion.
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Fast transactions: Payments are completed in just 3–5 seconds.
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Low fees: Cheaper than traditional bank transfers.
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Bank partnerships: XRP is widely used in payment systems and traditional finance.
XRP has a unique position in the financial industry due to its partnerships with banks and financial institutions. However, it is less popular among everyday users and developers. Additionally, a large portion of XRP tokens is owned by Ripple, making it more centralized than other cryptocurrencies.
Solana (SOL) – High-Speed Blockchain
Solana is one of the fastest blockchains, launched in 2020. Its high processing capacity makes it attractive for DeFi and NFTs. In the USA, Solana is backed by major venture capital firms and is quickly gaining popularity. Its native token, SOL, plays a key role in the ecosystem, used for paying fees and interacting with decentralized applications.
Advantages:
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Market capitalization: $74.03 billion.
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High transaction speed: Processes up to 65,000 transactions per second (TPS).
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Low fees: Ideal for micropayments and gaming applications.
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Unique Proof-of-History (PoH) consensus: Speeds up the network by organizing transactions efficiently.
Solana offers fast speeds and low fees, making it more efficient than Ethereum in this aspect. However, it is less reliable and stable compared to Ethereum.
Active Solana Wallets. Source: solscan.io
Cardano (ADA) – A Scientific Approach to Blockchain
Cardano is a blockchain developed with a scientific approach and launched in 2017 by Charles Hoskinson, one of Ethereum’s co-founders. The project is actively growing with support from universities and research institutions in the USA. In the Cardano ecosystem, the native token ADA plays a key role, being used for transactions and decentralized applications.
Advantages:
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Market capitalization: $30.52 billion.
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Research-driven development: Scientific approach to upgrades and innovation.
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Eco-friendly PoS: Uses Proof-of-Stake (PoS) to reduce energy consumption.
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Security and stability: Focused on creating a resilient and secure network.
Despite its strong foundation, Cardano adopts updates more slowly than competitors due to its rigorous scientific review process. In the DeFi and NFT space, it is currently less popular than Ethereum and Solana.
ADA price surge after the U.S. Crypto Reserve announcement. Source: CoinMarketCap
What About Other Coins in the U.S. Crypto Reserve?
Trump stated that the list of five cryptocurrencies is not final, and other assets may be added to the reserve. While no additional coins have been officially named, we can explore a few promising projects that are actively developing in the USA.
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Sui (SUI): A next-generation blockchain focused on high performance and scalability. With a market capitalization of over $10 billion, it has strong investor confidence. The SUI token plays a key role in the ecosystem, used for transaction fees, network security, and governance. Its fast processing speed and efficient design make it a strong candidate for the crypto reserve.
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Unichain: A new blockchain developed by the team behind Uniswap, one of the largest decentralized exchanges (DEX) with a daily trading volume exceeding $1 billion. Unichain aims to improve performance and reduce fees, making it ideal for traders and developers. Since it operates within the Ethereum ecosystem, it remains compatible with existing DeFi applications and users.
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Aptos (APT): A high-speed and scalable blockchain focused on security and transaction efficiency. With a processing speed of up to 160,000 transactions per second (TPS), it is one of the fastest blockchains. The APT token is used for payments, smart contract execution, and decentralized applications.
With Gem Wallet, anyone can create their own crypto reserve, including not only Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana, and Cardano but also other promising cryptocurrencies!
