The Philippines plans to legislate the establishment of a "national Bitcoin reserve"! The proposal for a strategic reserve of 10,000 BTC has sparked the encryption community, escalating the global Bitcoin policy competition.

The Philippine Congress officially deliberates the “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act,” proposing to authorize the Central Bank to accumulate 10,000 BTC within five years and mandatorily lock-up for 20 years. If passed, the Philippines will become the first country in Southeast Asia to establish a sovereign Bitcoin reserve through legislation and adopt the PoR reserve proof mechanism for transparent management. This article will also deeply analyze the correlation between the sovereign nation’s Bitcoin reserve strategy and the macro development trends of crypto assets.

1. Historic Legislative Breakthrough: National-Level Bitcoin Reserve Plan Exposed Philippine Congressman Miguel Luis Villafuerte has officially submitted Bill No. 421, the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, to Congress. This bill requires the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to accumulate Bitcoin annually as planned: purchasing 2,000 BTC each year for five consecutive years, totaling 10,000 BTC (approximately $690 million), with all assets to be stored in cold wallets and subject to strict regulation.

II. Mandatory Lock-up Position Mechanism and Debt Repayment Exception Clause The bill stipulates that Bitcoin reserves must be forcibly locked up for 20 years, during which sale, exchange, or disposal is strictly prohibited. The only exception allows the reserves to be used when the country services its sovereign debt. Even after the 20-year lock-up period ends, a maximum of only 10% of the holdings can be sold every two years. This design ensures the long-term strategic reserve attributes and avoids the impact of short-term market fluctuations on national asset allocation.

Three, Innovative Transparent Governance: PoR Reserve Proof and Quarterly Disclosure The bill requires the Central Bank governor to publish a Proof-of-Reserve report every quarter, publicly disclosing the following core information:

• Bitcoin Holdings and Real-time Valuation
• Cold wallet address list and on-chain verifiable data
• Private Key Management Control Process and Security Audit Results This move will make the Philippines a benchmark country for the transparent management of sovereign digital assets globally.

IV. Differentiated Advantages Compared to Traditional Sovereign Bitcoin Reserves Unlike El Salvador’s radical strategy of making Bitcoin legal tender, the Philippines plan focuses on the attributes of national fiscal reserves:

1. Active Accumulation Mechanism: Instead of relying on confiscated assets, it systematically purchases at a fixed amount.
2. Long-term Holding Period: A 20-year lock-up period surpasses most countries’ short-term speculation strategies.
3. Risk Control Framework: Staged investment and selling restrictions reduce market impact risk.

V. Response from the Crypto Community: Breakthrough of the “Digital Gold” Strategy in Emerging Markets Kadan Stadelmann, CTO of the Komodo platform, pointed out: “Bitcoin allows emerging markets like the Philippines to bypass the Western financial capital system and resist the risks of fiat currency devaluation. The country has joined the Bitcoin arms race, but the passage of the bill still faces challenges— the Philippines has not yet legislated to recognize the legal status of Bitcoin.” It is worth noting that if 10,000 BTC reserves are completed, the Philippines will surpass El Salvador (currently holding 6,276 BTC) and approach the holdings of the Kingdom of Bhutan (approximately 10,500 BTC).

6. Depth Comparison: A Comprehensive Analysis of Sovereign Nations’ Bitcoin Reserve Strategies The global sovereign Bitcoin reserve competition presents three major models:

1. Fiatization Model (El Salvador): Mandatory circulation payment and dual binding supported by national bonds
2. Reserve Asset Model (Philippines): National fiscal reserve allocation and long-term value storage
3. Mining Driven Model (Bhutan): Achieving zero-cost accumulation through clean energy mining. The advantages of the Philippine plan are:

• Avoid promoting resistance in retail payment scenarios
• Reduce price volatility risk through regular dollar-cost averaging.
• The PoR mechanism establishes national-level Crypto Assets audit standards.

VII. Regulatory Background and Policy Linkage Effects The timing of the proposal coincides with the Philippines strengthening its cryptocurrency regulation: the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued warnings this month to 10 trading platforms, including OKX, Bybit, and KuCoin, that have not registered according to the new regulations. This indicates that the country is building a dual-track digital asset strategy of “strictly regulating trading platforms and actively embracing reserve assets.”

[Conclusion] The “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act” if passed, will create a legislative precedent for national sovereign crypto asset reserves, promoting Bitcoin’s further evolution towards the “digital gold” narrative. For crypto asset investors, a national-level buying lock-up mechanism will significantly reduce the market circulation supply, while the transparency practices of PoR may become a paradigm revolution in the management of central bank digital currencies worldwide. It is advisable to closely monitor the voting progress in the Philippine Congress in the fourth quarter of 2024 and the specific implementation path of the central bank’s procurement plans.