RFK Jr. Wants the U.S. Treasury to Buy $4 Million of This Unstoppable Cryptocurrency. Here’s Why It Just Might Be a Good Idea.

The 2024 presidential election is shaping up to be a showdown between Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump. But somewhere in the background is another candidate: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., running as an independent.

For now, predictive analytics tracker Polymarket gives Kennedy just a 1% chance of winning the presidency. Still, RFK Jr. continues to find ways to strike a chord with voters.

Kennedy recently shared some of his thoughts on cryptocurrency. While his chances of winning in November are slim, I think RFK’s crypto views should be taken seriously.

What did RFK Jr. say about Bitcoin?

Last month, RFK Jr. headlined the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Tennessee.

Kennedy said in his inaugural speech last month that if he became president, he would instruct the U.S. Treasury Department to purchase 550 Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) per day until there was a reserve of at least 4 million Bitcoin.

While some may consider such an idea far-fetched, I actually see some truth in RFK’s logic. Let’s examine what makes Bitcoin valuable compared to other cryptocurrencies.

What makes Bitcoin unique?

Bitcoin is unique for a few reasons. Unlike dollars and coins, Bitcoin cannot be physically held. Instead, it is a digital currency that can be purchased on exchanges like Coinbase or Robinhood and can also be obtained through a process called mining.

According to RFK, aggressive buying of Bitcoin could cause the price of the crypto asset to reach “hundreds of trillions of dollars.”

While I can’t say for sure if this valuation is reasonable, I understand why RFK thinks the price of Bitcoin can change dramatically. Similar to stocks, the price of Bitcoin is determined by the dynamics of supply and demand.

Considering its total potential supply is only 21 million Bitcoins, the cryptocurrency is often viewed as scarce and is sometimes referred to as digital gold.

Owning 4 million Bitcoins would represent a significant portion of the total supply and could give the US some leverage over the price of the cryptocurrency.

Image source: Getty Images.

Why should the US Treasury invest in Bitcoin?

Cryptocurrencies are still generally viewed as a speculative investment, as they are unregulated and offer limited real-world utility.

But the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved a series of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in January, suggesting that the U.S. government and institutional investors are at least starting to warm up to crypto.

The story continues

Personally, I don’t think a position in Bitcoin is a far-fetched idea for the US government. The Treasury already owns alternative assets like gold. So to me, an allocation to Bitcoin just represents another layer of diversification.

At the current price of $61,000, 4 million Bitcoins would cost the Treasury approximately $244 billion. While that’s certainly not an insignificant amount, the Treasury Department has over $3.8 trillion in budget resources, according to USASpending.gov.

I also think that if the US Treasury Department establishes a healthy position in Bitcoin, it makes sense that other governments around the world will become increasingly interested in cryptocurrency. As a result, a higher level of involvement from major government agencies could quickly impact the value of Bitcoin.

Moreover, such a unique diversification of U.S. financial horsepower has the potential to impact more serious issues such as foreign policy and trade negotiations.

For these reasons, I believe that owning Bitcoin has greater returns and is a smart way to navigate an ever-changing and complex financial system.

Should you invest $1,000 in Bitcoin right now?

Before buying Bitcoin stocks, consider the following:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team has identified the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now… and Bitcoin wasn’t one of them. Here are 10 stocks that made the cut and could deliver huge returns in the years ahead.

Imagine if Nvidia had made this list on April 15, 2005… if you had invested $1,000 when we made our recommendation, you would have had $668,029!*

Stock Advisor gives investors an easy-to-follow plan for success, including portfolio-building guidance, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. Since 2002, Stock Advisor has more than quadrupled the return of the S&P 500*.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of August 12, 2024

Adam Spatacco has positions in Coinbase Global. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Coinbase Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

RFK Jr. Wants the U.S. Treasury to Buy $4 Million of This Unstoppable Cryptocurrency. Here’s Why It Could Be a Good Idea. originally published by The Motley Fool