The US Treasury has named Bitcoin “Digital Gold” in a new report titled Digital Assets and the Treasury Market. The findings shared on the Treasury’s official website expand on how cryptocurrencies are changing the investment landscape despite their speculative nature. The government arm is looking to soften the situation before President-elect Donald Trump takes over the reins on January 20, 2025. Trump has famously pledged to create a strategic bitcoin reserve in the US, which the Treasury will be directly involved in. It remains to be seen whether Trump will follow through with his promise. If the US decides to act, trillions of dollars worth of treasury bills could be invested in Bitcoin. The Rise of Stablecoins The report also focuses on the rise of US stablecoins, especially USD Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC). According to the findings, the rise in stablecoins has resulted in a modest increase in demand for short-dated treasuries. The stablecoin market is expected to witness further growth in the future, so it will need to be regulated strenuously. Tokenization The Treasury report also touched on the important tokenization aspect that has become one of the most well-known use cases of the Decentralized Ledger Technology (DLT) revolution. The report states that tokenizing Real World Assets (RWA) across interoperable blockchains will considerably benefit this process and unleash new economic arrangements and opportunities. Key US Treasury Projects, Including Tokenizing US Treasuries The American Treasury focuses on projects like tokenized treasury repo, tokenized treasury funds, and digital asset treasury tokenizations. The report lists the major benefits of using this new approach, including improved collateral management, increased liquidity, improved clearing and settlement, and more. Significant downsides reported include technological risks, operability risks, and legal and economic uncertainty due to the nature of the digital currency economy. The Future The US Treasury seems eager to take advantage of the crypto revolution and devise a solution that works in its favor. However, the report itself doesn’t trust public blockchain networks for tokenization and other advancements. For this, the department plans to introduce a government-managed private blockchain. Overall, the report proposes a cautious approach by the government as the blockchain sector is extremely volatile. However, investing directly in Bitcoin is no longer a farce. Donald Trump’s second presidency beckons, resulting in seismic changes to the status quo of America’s coffers.
