Polish presidential candidate Sławomir Mentzen vowed to create a Bitcoin reserve if he wins next year’s election, mirroring a promise made by US President-elect Donald Trump during his campaign.
In a Nov. 17 statement to X, Mentzen also doubled down on his stance that if he becomes president, Poland will become more crypto-friendly, after being asked if he would consider implementing a Bitcoin reserve:
In an earlier post, the CEO of crypto exchange Swap.ly, Lech Wilczynski, shared the open source Strategic Bitcoin Reserve’ model policy created by crypto advocacy group the Satoshi Action Fund, asking Mentzen if he would follow the plan if elected.
“The draft bill on the strategic Bitcoin reserve is available for use. There is no point in waiting. Instead of passing a nonsense bill on crypto assets, this should go first before it is too late,” Wilczynski said.
“Will the president Sławomir Mentzen seek to create a strategic reserve in Poland?” he added.
Mentzen replied that “of course,” he would.
Presidential elections will be held in Poland sometime in May 2025. Mentzen has gained significant popularity in Poland, especially among libertarian and right-wing voters.
Following other Bitcoin presidents
During his campaign, Trump made many crypto-related promises, including establishing a “Strategic Bitcoin Stockpile.”
Senator Cynthia Lummis already introduced a bill to establish a Bitcoin strategic reserve back in July, which, if approved, would create a Bitcoin fund to hedge against the national debt.
According to the bill, the goal is to acquire one million Bitcoin over five years to hold for at least 20 years.
Two other countries have taken serious steps to hold large amounts of Bitcoin.
El Salvador became the first country in the world to legalize Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021. Under the direction of President Nayib Bukele, the country continues to accumulate BTC regularly, with its current stockpile sitting at 5,748.8 Bitcoin.
The Kingdom of Bhutan has also been quietly mining Bitcoin for years. Arkham Intelligence revealed in September that Bhutan held about $780 million in digital assets.