Bitcoin deemed too risky for national reserves, according to the central bank of Brazil

A national bitcoin reserve: fiscal utopia or daring accelerator for crypto industry? The concept appeals to some as a historical opportunity to modernize state chests. Others, more cautious, see it as excessive risk taking. And in Brazil, the central bank and the government clearly do not read the same book. While some dream of a sovereign digital future, others tighten the brakes. Behind the figures and laws, it is a global ideological battle around the queen of the cryptos that is played out and which far exceeds the Brazilian borders.

Cold War in Brasilia: the central bank locks the Bitcoin dream

It is a showdown like Brazil has not known it for a long time in the financial sector, nourished by a desire to end the dollar and to redraw its monetary sovereignty. The central bank has released heavy artillery Against the Bitcoin reserve project. Luís Guilherme Siciliano, director of international reserves, expressed his firm opposition to the project. According to him, Bitcoin does not correspond to the standards of a reserve asset. He relied on the IMF classification, which ranks the BTC among the assets “non -financial and not produced”, in the same way as natural resources such as land or ores.

In contrast, some members of the government see it as a daring turn to take. Pedro Giocondo Guerra, chief of staff to the vice-president, defends this vision With a clear and trenched quote:

Debiting the creation of a sovereign reserve in Bitcoin is of public and vital interest for the prosperity of Brazil. After all, Bitcoin is digital gold, the gold of the Internet.

Two camps, two visions of the world. One bet on monetary prudence, the other on economic disruption. Who will have the last word in this balance between tradition and modernity?

Crypto taxed, crypto valued: a strategy that makes cough

Tax with one hand, invest in the other: a strategy that makes more than one in the crypto community. Since June, Brazil has applied a uniform tax of 17.5 % to all capital gains linked to cryptocurrencies. No more exemption thresholds. Small investors pay the high price, even though the country is considering injecting up to $ 18.6 billion in its Bitcoin reserves.

A contradiction? For some, yes. This tax turn, intended to bail out the state funds, sends a vague message to those who believe in the blockchain innovation. Why severely tax an asset which we plan to make a strategic pillar of public finance at the same time?

The tax burden could cool local ardor. And it doesn't go unnoticed. On the forums and X, several members of the Brazilian crypto sphere accuse the government of double game: “They want the gains, not the vision”. A sentence that sums up the current ambivalence between digital dream and tax need.

When Brazil flirts with the giants

It is not nothing: Brazil is today 10ᵉ countries in the world for the adoption of cryptos and first in Latin America. In 2024, $ 76 billion was exchanged in crypto in the country. Bill 4501/2024, nicknamed Resbit, intends to allow the central bank to buy up to 5 % of its exchange reserves, that is About $ 19 billionin bitcoin.

And this is not an idea launched in the air. On August 20, a first public hearing brought together representatives of the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance, Fintechs such as Bitso and actors of the Association Abcripto. Objective: debate the technical and political contours of the project.

Zoom on key figures:

• $ 76 billion exchanged in crypto in Brazil in 2024;
• 10ᵉ World Country in Crypto adoption;
• RESBIT project estimated at $ 18.6 billion;
• Parliamentary audience held on August 20, 2025;
• 6 major institutions invited to the debate.

Brazil clearly flirts with a pioneer role. But wanting to follow in the footsteps of Salvador or the USA, the risk is great. Strategic flight or giant jump to the future? The lines remain unclear.

If Brazil gropes, it is not alone. In the United States, the idea of ​​a Bitcoin reserve does not consensus either. In Arizona, Governor Katie Hobbs rejected a similar proposal three times, the last of which concerned a reserve built from Bitcoins seized. This shows that even in technophile bastions, states remain divided in the place to be given to crypto in their economic strategy.