While the United States and China are in a global trade war, some commentators in the XRP community believe XRP could give the U.S. an upper hand.

Egrag, a widely followed analyst in the XRP community, expressed this perspective in a tweet. Notably, the U.S. and China are involved in an unprecedented economic conflict, with both countries imposing tariffs on one another, creating tension in the global financial market.

However, crypto commentators like Egrag have highlighted the potential role of digital assets amid these tensions. In his tweet, he cited the nearly equal Bitcoin reserves held by the two nations.

The image accompanying the tweet indicated that the U.S. government holds 198,109 BTC, while China holds approximately 190,000 BTC. While both governments are nearly on par in terms of their BTC portfolios, Egrag suggested the U.S. could have an overall advantage in crypto exposure when factoring XRP in.

XRP as a “Key Ingredient of the USA, Not China”

Specifically, he claimed that China does not hold XRP, while implying that the U.S. government does. He particularly pointed to Ripple’s escrowed XRP as a key advantage for the United States. 

This view hinges on a hypothetical scenario in which Ripple’s 36 billion XRP in escrow could somehow be an asset of the U.S. government. This perspective appears to take inspiration from President Donald Trump’s earlier declaration that the government should establish a crypto reserve that includes XRP. 

Following this, some XRP commentators speculated that Ripple’s escrowed XRP tokens could serve as part of such a reserve. Some even suggested that Ripple would only require a line of code to redirect the escrow execution to the U.S. government.

However, this remains purely hypothetical. Many believe it is far-fetched to assume Ripple would hand over $80 billion worth of XRP in escrow to the government for a strategic reserve. They view it as an unprecedented act of philanthropy with little chance of becoming reality.

“It Should Not Be About XRP Verse Bitcoin”

However, not everyone in the community fully aligns with this idea. Vincent Van Code, another prominent voice in the XRP space, offered an opposing perspective to Egrag’s tweet. He emphasized that the conversation shouldn’t center solely on XRP versus Bitcoin. 

Van Code noted that the U.S. and Chinese economies operate at scales of tens of trillions of dollars. According to him, holdings of $20 billion in BTC, while notable, are relatively insignificant in the broader context. 

He also stressed that while crypto represents a powerful technological innovation, its standalone value as a national asset may not translate into substantial strategic benefit without deeper integration into economic infrastructure.

A key point to be not about XRP vs BTC

Also remember GDP of these countries are 10s of Trillions of dollars, $20BN worth of BTC is chump change, heck USA gives that money to countries just to fund ammunition and weapons.

Crypto is an important TECHNOLOGY. but as an asset of… https://t.co/dmVEsISi8Z

— Vincent Van Code (@vincent_vancode) April 25, 2025

Notably, Trump’s executive order suggested that the government could hold coins like XRP as part of an altcoin stockpile, while BTC would be a reserve asset. Contrary to Egrag’s suggestion, the U.S. government does not currently hold XRP.

Still, XRP commentators continue to speculate on how the government could eventually become an XRP holder. One suggestion is that Ripple’s upcoming $50 million fine could be paid in XRP.