How Bitcoin is giving the US and Russia a game to play that both can win

Donald Trump’s second incoming administration has broad plans to consolidate US leadership in the development of blockchain cryptocurrencies and the delivery of their products to markets.

Meanwhile, Russia is using Bitcoin to trade outside traditional financial channels in the face of international sanctions.

While these developments certainly have adversarial strategic undertones, the way Bitcoin is changing the equation is very promising. Cryptocurrency offers world powers a peaceful competition over technology.

It turns out that with Bitcoin, even sovereign partners/rivals of the atomic age can settle differences using money, just like civilized people.

Russians Gain Ground in Bitcoin Race

The United States and Russia have long shared common interests, especially since they allied against the Axis powers in World War II. They include a common interest in atomic security, nuclear non-proliferation, the fight against terrorism and space colonization.

They are also both secular states with constitutions that guarantee freedom of expression and freedom of religion. Meanwhile, both are majority Christian nations, with roughly two-thirds of each country identifying as a person of faith in a traditional belief system.

While 20th-century disputes between the United States and Russia involved armed conflict, the Obama-Trump era has focused on de-escalation, demilitarization and win-win outcomes.

This includes reductions in strategic offensive weapons, economic tariffs on Russian imports, and trade sanctions against Russian financial institutions.

Bitcoin adds another domain that de-escalates conflict and leverages it for technological advancement and commercial rivalry.

Trump promises that the US will take the lead

A month after his historic election victory in November, Trump reiterated his promise that under the new administration, the US will “do something great with crypto.”

“Because we don’t want China or anybody else; others are accepting it and we want to be the boss,” the incoming president told CNBC’s Jim Cramer. “We want to be the boss of AI. We’re ahead of AI.”

“And we have to produce an enormous amount of electricity. And you know that,” he explained. “It’s incredible when you think we need more than double what we already have. But we can do it.”

As Trump sees it, in an ideal world, all remaining Bitcoin would be mined in the United States.

Bottom line for investors

If you think Redditors running for Bitcoin drove its price up to incredible proportions, imagine what will happen when sovereign world powers join the fray.

Institutional adoption on Wall Street with custody products and ETFs supported Bitcoin’s price growth over the past four-year cycle. Sovereign adoption is here to support its price growth.

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