Pump After the Dump: Trump’s Crypto Reserve Pivot Fuels Surge and Insider Suspicion

Happy Monday Bitcoiners, it's Bam here with another Bitcoin update!

Each week, our team at Bitcoin News saves you time by curating the most impactful events into a concise, easy-to-read update.

Notable events this week include:

• Trump greenlights Strategic Crypto Reserve.

• Strategy closes in on 500K BTC.

• NostrPix wins hackathon with no-signup Lightning-to-fiat bridge.

Let’s dive in! ⚡

Azteco. For every bit of life.

LATEST NEWS 📰

🙌 ADOPTION

• NostrPIX won the first-ever Bitcoin++ hackathon with an instant, no-signup Lightning-to-fiat bridge, enabling anyone to send payments in Brazil using Lightning and Nostr Connect top-ups.

• Strategy launches the Strategy Bitcoin Hub in Virginia, a coworking space within its corporate HQ for Bitcoin enthusiasts to connect, collaborate, and innovate.

• Alex Chriss, PayPal CEO, posts a video of purchasing a hat with Bitcoin over PayPal.

⚖️ LEGAL

• Utah is set to become the first U.S. state with a Bitcoin reserve as the bill awaits a final vote in the Senate.

• Swiss National Bank President Martin Schlegel dismisses calls for the central bank to hold Bitcoin, arguing that it is software “and we all know software can have bugs and other weak points.”

• President Trump will host and speak at the first-ever White House Crypto Summit on March 7, bringing together top crypto leaders and policymakers.

📈 MARKETS

• Strategy acquires 20,356 BTC for $1.99B at an average price of $97,514 per Bitcoin, bringing its total holdings to 499,096 BTC.

• Fold Holdings adds 10 more Bitcoin to its treasury one week after its IPO on Nasdaq, bringing its total to 1,010 BTC. Rezolve AI ($RZLV) announces plans for a $1B Bitcoin treasury, starting with a $100M purchase, despite a market cap of just $500M.

• BlackRock adds its own Bitcoin ETF into its $150 billion model-portfolio universe.

⛏️ MINING

• Braiins Mining unveils its self-developed ASIC test chip to decentralize Bitcoin hardware and challenge China’s dominance in ASIC fabrication.

• Bitdeer adds 50 BTC to its treasury for $4 million.

• Since December 2024, Bitcoin miners have stopped selling. Unlike previous price surges that triggered heavy sales, withdrawal transactions have declined, and reserves remain stable, indicating miners are accumulating during the market downturn.

🗳️ POLITICS

• Trump directs the Presidential Working Group to move forward on a Crypto Strategic Reserve that includes XRP, SOL, ADA, ETH and BTC.

• The SEC states that meme coins are generally NOT considered securities under US federal law.

• Ukraine is advancing crypto legalization, with a key vote expected soon. Lawmakers are considering a 5-10% crypto tax, with a final decision by mid-2025.

BAMS 2 SATS 🧢

When Donald Trump took the oath of office on January 20, 2025, Bitcoin erupted to an all-time high of $109,000, fueled by hopes he’d deliver on his campaign pledge to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Stockpile.

But the euphoria didn’t last. Over the past month, Bitcoin struggled to hold above $100,000, drifting sideways before a brutal 28% plunge on Monday sent it crashing to $78,000. Sentiment cratered to a Fear & Greed Index reading of 10 (levels not seen since the FTX collapse), as chatter on X questioned whether the bull market had topped out.

Analysts pointed to massive outflows from Bitcoin ETFs, with nearly $5 billion exiting in recent weeks, dwarfing even the August yen carry trade dip.

Then came Sunday, March 2, 2025, when Trump dropped a bombshell. At 10:24 AM ET, he posted on Truth Social, announcing he’d directed the Presidential Working Group to advance a “Crypto Strategic Reserve” including XRP, SOL, and ADA.

Bitcoiners reeled. Trump’s campaign had explicitly promised a Bitcoin stockpile, with no mention of altcoins. The omission stunned the community. But less than two hours later, at 12:11 PM ET, Trump clarified with a follow-up: “And, obviously, BTC and ETH, as other valuable Cryptocurrencies, will be the heart of the Reserve. I also love Bitcoin and Ethereum.” The reversal was swift and the market reacted instantly.

Bitcoin roared back, reclaiming $94,000 by Sunday afternoon—a 20% surge from its recent low. Since Friday’s close at $78,200, the cryptocurrency has soared over 20%, officially exiting bear market territory and sitting just 16% shy of a new all-time high.

A Broader Reserve and Insider Whispers

But questions linger. Why has the Strategic Reserve expanded beyond Bitcoin? Campaign proposals and suggestions had pegged a U.S. Bitcoin stockpile ranging from 200K to 1 million BTC. Now, with no clear explanation, it’s ballooning to include a basket of cryptocurrencies. The shift has raised eyebrows as well as suspicions of insider trading.

On Saturday, a whale opened a staggering $200 million leveraged position, 50x long on BTC and ETH, using just $4 million in capital. His entry was razor-thin: $85,908 for Bitcoin (liquidation at $84,752) and $2,197 for Ethereum (liquidation at $2,149.40). By Sunday, as Trump’s posts hit, he closed most of his trades, pocketing $6.8 million in a single day. A slight dip would’ve wiped him out. Instead, his timing synced perfectly with the Reserve announcement. Coincidence? Or did someone know what was coming?

The plot thickens. On Friday, the Nasdaq 100 spiked 2% in the final three hours of trading—unexplained by major headlines. Futures are poised to gap higher as markets digest the crypto reserve news. As analyst MacroScope noted on X, “Whoever is advising Trump on the timing of these posts knows what they’re doing. Some large positions from last week are now badly offsides.” Adding fuel to the fire, BlackRock announced Friday it’s adding its Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) to its model portfolios.

The Bullish Undercurrent

Beneath the volatility, a seismic shift is underway. Nearly 80 public companies now hold Bitcoin in their treasuries - a figure growing parabolically. Dig into 13F filings, and the signals are unmistakable: Paul Tudor Jones nearly doubled his IBIT stake, making it his largest single holding among 2,944 positions, while the UAE Sovereign Wealth Fund revealed a hefty Bitcoin allocation of nearly half a billion dollars. These players aren’t here to flip, they’re positioning for outsized gains.

Trump’s crypto czar, David Sacks, teased “more to come” at the summit this Friday. With Bitcoin ETF outflows reversing, institutional adoption surging, and a U.S. Crypto Reserve on the horizon, the noise may be deafening—but the opportunity is deafeningly clear. This could be the greatest asymmetric bet of our lifetime, and it’s only starting to be priced in. Tune out the whiplash. The real story is just beginning.

Stay safe and keep on stacking!
Bam

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