A research fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute is urging Taiwan to reconsider holding Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset, citing the island’s vulnerability to geopolitical threats and overexposure to the US dollar. In a report published Tuesday, Jacob Langenkamp argues that Bitcoin is the only reserve asset that would remain fully accessible to Taiwan in the event of a military blockade or invasion by China. He contends that gold could be seized or stranded, and that USD reserves could face restrictions under such scenarios, while Bitcoin requires no physical transport.
Langenkamp points to Taiwan’s significant dollar dependency as a core vulnerability. He notes that the country’s central bank reserves consist of at least 80% USD-denominated assets, and that most of its trade is also conducted in dollars. This concentration, he argues, leaves Taiwan heavily exposed to the risk of dollar debasement driven by growing US debt, Federal Reserve monetary expansion, a potential AI market downturn, and declining semiconductor revenues.
According to Langenkamp, Bitcoin could work alongside gold to hedge against dollar debasement. He also suggests that adopting Bitcoin as a reserve asset ahead of peer nations could benefit the Taiwanese public through subsequent price appreciation. His comments come as a growing number of nation-states have begun exploring strategic Bitcoin reserves, a trend widely viewed as a positive signal for the asset’s long-term value.
Taiwan’s Central Bank of the Republic of China (CBC) had previously examined the possibility of a national Bitcoin reserve but ruled it out in December, citing concerns over volatility, liquidity, and custody. The bank identified the US dollar as a safer alternative at that time. Langenkamp acknowledges that these concerns are valid but argues they are addressable with institutional expertise, and that both liquidity and volatility issues are likely to diminish as Bitcoin matures and gains broader adoption among nations.
Despite rejecting a formal Bitcoin reserve, the CBC committed to further testing of digital asset technology through a sandbox environment using crypto the country already holds. Taiwanese lawmaker Ko Ju-Chun disclosed on X last year that the country’s Ministry of Justice holds 210 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $14 million, confiscated during criminal investigations. According to data from BitBo, Taiwan is not currently listed in country reserve rankings, but its disclosed holdings would place it seventh among national Bitcoin holders, behind El Salvador but ahead of Finland.
The report adds to a broader global conversation about the role of Bitcoin in national financial strategy. Langenkamp frames Taiwan’s situation as uniquely pressing given its geopolitical exposure, arguing that the CBC has an opportunity to act before its regional peers. Whether Taiwanese policymakers will revisit the question in light of these arguments remains to be seen, but the debate over Bitcoin’s role in sovereign reserves continues to gain traction internationally.
Originally reported by CoinTelegraph.
