Gold Meets Blockchain: The Shiny New Crypto Craze!

As the grand scheme of the Bitcoin Strategic Reserve (SBR) unfolds, a handful of “budget-neutral” strategies are tickling the fancy of policymakers. 🧐

Our dear former President Donald Trump, ever the visionary, suggested that the US government could dabble in Bitcoin holdings, provided it does so without breaking the bank. One glittering idea that’s been tossed around? Gold. Yes, the shiny stuff. 💰

Greg Cipolaro of the New York Digital Investment Group (NYDIG) chimed in, proposing that the government could tokenize these assets for a dash of transparency. This isn’t the first time the idea of tokenizing gold has been floated—Elon Musk, the man who can’t resist a good blockchain, has also flirted with the concept. 🚀

A Growing Movement To Track Gold And Tokenize It On The Blockchain

There’s a burgeoning movement within the Trump administration suggesting that the country’s gold reserves be tracked using blockchain. Cipolaro, NYDIG’s global head of research, floated the idea of using blockchains to monitor the country’s gold reserves, particularly its spending. In a statement on March 21st, Cipolaro quipped that “blockchains aren’t that smart” since they offer limited information. 🤖

NEW: NYDIG, A BITCOIN SUBSIDARY OF ASSET MANAGER STONE RIDGE, SAYS TOKENIZED U.S. GOLD COULD ULTIMATELY BENEFIT $BTC
— The Wolf Of All Streets (@scottmelker) March 24, 2025

He used Bitcoin and its blockchain as an example, which doesn’t know the asset’s price in real time. Cipolaro explained that tokenization or tracking of the reserves (on the blockchain) would help the government keep tabs on its status, including spending. And this system requires trust and coordination, which is, alas, absent in Bitcoin. 🤷‍♂️

Increasing Calls For Gold Reserve Transparency

Cipolaro’s suggestions come amid a growing clamor for increased auditing and transparency in the country’s management of gold reserves. Last month, Republican Rand Paul urged Elon Musk to examine the government’s gold bullion holdings, which are currently held at Fort Knox. According to the US Mint, the Fort Knox facility manages roughly half of the country’s gold reserves. 🏦

Currently, the Treasury is tasked with auditing and publishing a report on the country’s gold held at Fort Knox and other locations. However, Trump and DOGE administrator Elon Musk are questioning the current auditing scheme, saying the process “isn’t transparent enough.” 🕵️‍♂️

What To Expect From The Tokenization Of Gold?

Cipolaro’s report published on NYDIG offered a possible use case and scenario in case gold is tokenized. He used the current reserves as an example, with the Federal Reserves holding over 13 million fine troy ounces of gold. The government, he says, can issue a similar number of tokens, which can be called “USTG.” Each USTG represents one fine troy ounce of gold held in the country’s reserve. 🪙

Cipolaro explained that if the Treasury acquires some gold, it can add “some number of USTG tokens” to the circulation, which is held in a wallet. Now, if it sells some of these reserves, the government can “burn” the tokens. He added that it’s also possible to move tokens during a sale. If a sale happens, the physical gold can be transported to the purchasing entity. 🔥

2025-03-25 14:43

A Growing Movement To Track Gold And Tokenize It On The Blockchain

Increasing Calls For Gold Reserve Transparency

What To Expect From The Tokenization Of Gold?

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