2370: $602B Bitcoin Reserve - Taiwan Prepares For China

**Justin Verrengia** (0:00)
Today's episode of Bitcoin News Alerts is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you can save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you can save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it at progressive.com. Progressive casualty insurance company and affiliates' potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. Here's a crazy thought. What if Bitcoin isn't being adopted because number go up? What if governments are starting to need it? Check it out. $602 billion is at risk. Not inside of a hedge fund, not inside a corporation and not sitting inside of a bank, but inside the reserves of an entire nation. And now that nation is openly discussing Bitcoin as a form of protection. Think about that. For years, Bitcoin critics argued that governments would never take Bitcoin seriously. They would say things like, it's just too volatile, too risky to trust it. It's magical internet money, too speculative to hold. Now one government is asking a completely different question. They're asking what happens if your reserves can be frozen? What happens if access can be restricted? And what happens if the rules suddenly change during a geopolitical crisis? Because that's the reality Taiwan is confronting today. Taiwan Central Bank met with the Bitcoin Policy Institute to discuss adopting Bitcoin as a reserve asset. Let that sink in. Not because Bitcoin suddenly became fashionable, not because politicians want to impress Bitcoiners, but because resilience matters when hundreds of billions of dollars are on the line. Taiwan currently controls roughly 602 billion in foreign reserves, and more than 80% is reportedly held in US dollars. Go figure. And that's exactly why this conversation is happening, because traditional reserves come with dependencies. Someone controls the system, someone controls the settlement, someone controls the rails, and someone controls the rules. Most people never think about those risks until a crisis arrives, until tensions escalate, and until access becomes uncertain. That's why Taiwanese lawmakers are discussing Bitcoin reserves. What if a portion of national reserves could exist outside the traditional financial system? What if a reserve asset could be self-custodied? And what if it couldn't be deluded overnight, or frozen by another party, or printed into oblivion? That's where Bitcoin enters the discussion. Not as a replacement for every reserve asset, and not as an all-or-nothing bet, but as an additional layer of strategic protection. A reserve asset with no central issuer, no border directors, no government printer, and Taiwan isn't alone. Iran is already using Bitcoin inside the Strait of Hormuz. Not as speculation, not as trade, but as strategic infrastructure. One government is discussing Bitcoin as a reserve asset. Another is using Bitcoin to support commerce through one of the world's most important shipping routes. Different countries, different challenges, same conclusion. And the trend doesn't stop there. Right now in the United States, lawmakers have proposed acquiring 1 million Bitcoin for a strategic reserve, not for one year, not for five years, but for 20 years. And I'll give you an update on that. Stay tuned. Think about it. Taiwan is discussing Bitcoin as a reserve asset. The US is discussing 1 million Bitcoin for a strategic reserve. The conversation is changing and it's changing fast. Just look at what happened this week. BlackRock's new Bitcoin ETF began trading today. I'm also covering that, so stay tuned. The largest asset manager on earth isn't moving away from Bitcoin. It's building new products around Bitcoin. And at the same time, strategy continues buying, and Wall Street is building Bitcoin products. That's why this story matters. Most people still view Bitcoin through the lens of price, but the governments are starting to view Bitcoin through the lens of sovereignty, strategic infrastructure. Those are very different conversations. One asks, how high can Bitcoin go? The other asks, what happens if we need it? And that question may end up being far more important because once governments begin evaluating Bitcoin as reserve infrastructure, the game changes. Not for one country, not for one company, but for everyone. So the simple question, which country adopts Bitcoin next? Now forget about the Bitcoin price for a minute. I want you to think like a government because what Taiwan is discussing right now literally changes everything. Here's the breaking news. Taiwan Central Bank meets with the Bitcoin Policy Institute to discuss adopting Bitcoin as a reserve asset. Over 80% of Taiwan's 602 billion in foreign reserves sit in US dollar assets, which can be frozen or blocked in a conflict. So they're ultimately looking at adopting Bitcoin specifically to protect their 602 billion dollars from China. Taiwan is exploring Bitcoin as a seizure resistant asset. If geopolitical tensions with China escalate, and I'd say very smart move because what did we just witness recently with Iran for the strategic oil choke point, which is the Strait of Hormuz, where they're now accepting Bitcoin to pass because otherwise their funds can be frozen, which is exactly what happened. The US government called the Tether USDT team and said, there may be some terrorists, please freeze. These funds were 377 million dollars. And no questions asked, they froze the funds. That's because your favorite stable coin can be frozen. But ultimately Bitcoin is censorship resistant and it's permissionless. It's the only currency in which they don't have full control over because anyone can use it, including your enemy. Whereas stable coin, US dollar and most forms of currency effortlessly can be frozen or confiscated and Bitcoin doesn't have that problem. Now, diving a little deeper, the island facing constant threats from Beijing is asking a wild question, what if your reserves can't be frozen? That's the pitch a Taiwanese legislator put up to the premier and central bank governor allocating a slice of that 602 billion FX reserves to Bitcoin. Treasuries and vaulted gold carry counter-party risk in a crisis. Self-custodied Bitcoin doesn't, because only self-custodied Bitcoin cannot be confiscated or frozen. It's just a fact. So this is big news, because what if other countries start doing the same thing? It's called game theory. No one wants to be controlled or under the thumb of another sovereign power, because when shit hits the fan, who knows? You know, be prepared for the worst, maybe expect the best, but you better be prepared. And that's why it's at the top of their list, you know, entertaining, adopting Bitcoin as a strategic reserve, as it should be.