Peter Schiff Admits a US Bitcoin Reserve Makes Sense but Rejects XRP Inclusion

Economist and well-known Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff has once again stirred the crypto community with his commentary on the proposed Strategic U.S. Crypto Reserve.

In a recent tweet, the gold bull expressed a reluctant understanding of the rationale behind a Bitcoin reserve but criticized the inclusion of XRP and other altcoins in the U.S. national crypto reserve plan.

On Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that his January executive order on digital assets had directed the Presidential working group to move forward on a national Crypto Strategic Reserve.

U.S. Crypto Reserve Plan

While this initiative was initially planned to include only Bitcoin, several crypto community members were surprised when Trump mentioned it would add altcoins like ETH, XRP, SOL, and ADA. This announcement triggered a market surge, with Bitcoin rising over 10%, XRP soaring 40%, and ETH, SOL, and ADA also posting notable gains.

However, Schiff seemed unimpressed with the decision to add XRP to the U.S. reserve. While he acknowledged the logic of a Bitcoin reserve, he questioned the rationale behind including XRP in the country’s national stockpile.

“I get the rationale for a Bitcoin reserve. I don’t agree with it, but I get it. We have a gold reserve. Bitcoin is digital gold, which is better than analog gold. So let’s create a Bitcoin reserve too. But what’s the rationale for an XRP reserve? Why the hell would we need that?” he said on X.

Community Reacts

The XRP critique drew swift backlash from the crypto community, with many arguing that the digital asset’s role in cross-border payments makes it a viable reserve asset—something Schiff dismissed.

Jason Higgins, a tech advocate and crypto trader, commented:

“Peter Schiff is being intellectually dishonest here. He gets Bitcoin reserves because it’s “digital gold,” but conveniently ignores that XRP is designed for efficient global payments something gold and Bitcoin both fail at. A reserve of XRP makes sense for institutions facilitating instant, low-cost cross border settlements. Dismissing it without engaging in its use case is lazy.”

Schiff’s comments reflect his long-standing view that Bitcoin, while flawed, at least mimics gold’s scarcity narrative—something he believes altcoins like XRP, designed for efficient global payments, fail to justify in a national reserve context.

Meanwhile, in a separate X post, Schiff framed Trump’s announcement as a “bailout” to prop up a faltering crypto market, suggesting Bitcoin was “on the verge of another sharp selloff” before the post rallied prices.