Monthly Review of March 2025

This monthly review examines the most important cryptocurrency-related news from March. The key cryptocurrency news in March revolved around the U.S. bitcoin reserve, corporate bitcoin purchases and purchase plans, the SEC dropping its lawsuit against Ripple, and CME Group launching Solana futures.

              
March in the Cryptocurrency Market
Cryptocurrency prices declined in March, mirroring stock markets. The prices of the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, Bitcoin and Ethereum, fell by approximately 6% and 22%, respectively. However, within Northcrypto’s selection, some cryptocurrencies performed better in March, as the decentralized exchange Curve (CRV) and the smart contract platform EOS (EOS) saw gains of around 7% and 6%, respectively.

Cryptocurrency News from the United States
At the beginning of March, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve and a separate digital asset stockpile for the United States. In practice, the creation of a strategic bitcoin reserve means that the U.S. will not sell approximately 200,000 seized bitcoins and may acquire more bitcoins through budget-neutral means, ensuring no costs for taxpayers. On the other hand, the digital asset stockpile consists of other cryptocurrencies owned by the U.S., but there are no current plans to expand it.

The U.S. was also in the cryptocurrency spotlight when President Trump spoke via video at the Digital Asset Summit, a cryptocurrency conference held in New York. Trump stated that he aims to make the U.S. the undisputed Bitcoin superpower and the crypto capital of the world. Additionally, he urged Congress to pass groundbreaking legislation to create simple and common-sense regulations for stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar. This was the first time a sitting U.S. president had spoken at a cryptocurrency conference.

Corporate Bitcoin Purchases and Purchase Plans
March saw multiple reports regarding corporate bitcoin purchase plans and actual bitcoin purchases. U.S.-based company Strategy announced three bitcoin purchases in March, acquiring a total of 29,089 bitcoins for just over €2.3 billion. In March, Strategy’s holdings surpassed the 500,000 bitcoin milestone, and with the latest purchase, their holdings increased to 528,185 bitcoins, valued at over €40 billion by the end of the month. Additionally, Strategy revealed plans to raise $21 billion primarily for bitcoin purchases, mainly through stock issuance.

Similarly, Japanese company Metaplanet, which had previously acquired bitcoin, announced three bitcoin purchases in March, increasing its holdings by 959 bitcoins. These acquisitions brought Metaplanet’s total bitcoin holdings to 3,350, worth over €250 million at the end of the month. In addition to these purchases, Metaplanet made a noteworthy addition to its strategic team in March by appointing Eric Trump, son of U.S. President Donald Trump, as a strategic advisor.

A new company joined the ranks of bitcoin buyers in March, as video platform Rumble, known for its focus on free information sharing, announced its bitcoin purchase. Rumble acquired 188 bitcoins for just under €16 million. This was the first major step in Rumble’s Bitcoin strategy, announced in November 2024. In the purchase announcement, Rumble’s CEO, Chris Pavlovski, spoke about Bitcoin’s potential as an inflation hedge.

The most widely discussed bitcoin purchase news in March involved U.S. gaming retailer GameStop (GME). GameStop is well known due to the massive media coverage it received in 2021, when its stock price skyrocketed in a short squeeze driven by retail investors. In March, GameStop made headlines again when it announced its decision to add bitcoin to its treasury reserve assets. Shortly after, GameStop revealed plans to raise $1.3 billion through convertible bonds, with the funds likely being used primarily for bitcoin acquisitions.

SEC Dropping Its Lawsuit Against Ripple
The price of XRP, known for fast payments, rose in March after Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple, announced that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was dropping its lawsuit against Ripple. Ripple is the company behind cryptocurrency XRP. The lawsuit had created long-term uncertainty around XRP, as it was filed back in 2020. The SEC had accused Ripple of violating U.S. securities laws by selling XRP without registering it with the SEC.

CME Group Launches Solana Futures
CME Group, the world’s leading derivatives marketplace, launched Solana futures in March. A future is a derivative contract between two parties agreeing to buy or sell an asset, in this case, Solana, at a predetermined price at a future date. This was a significant milestone for Solana, as the introduction of Bitcoin futures at the end of 2017 is still considered a major event in Bitcoin’s history. According to comments from CME Group, the Solana futures were introduced to meet increasing customer demand.

Summary
As seen earlier this year, March once again brought cryptocurrency news related to U.S. President Donald Trump and the new U.S. administration. The strategic bitcoin reserve can be viewed as the first major step in the competition between global superpowers in cryptocurrency markets. While the U.S. has not yet announced plans to buy bitcoin, this remains a strong possibility for the future, as several policymakers in the current administration support such a move. March also marked a historic moment in another way, as a sitting U.S. president spoke at a cryptocurrency conference for the first time. In his speech, Trump emphasized his administration’s goal of making the U.S. the leader in both cryptocurrency innovation and regulation.

March saw an unusually high number of reports on corporate bitcoin purchases and purchase plans. Strategy made history by becoming the first company to exceed 500,000 bitcoins in holdings. The company continues to develop new ways to raise funds for bitcoin acquisitions, so its bitcoin holdings are expected to grow further. Japanese company Metaplanet is following in Strategy’s footsteps, although it lacks the resources to make as large-scale purchases as Strategy. However, Metaplanet has been rapidly increasing its bitcoin holdings to over 3,300 bitcoins, with a target of 10,000 bitcoins by the end of the year still appearing achievable.

Rumble’s announcement of its first bitcoin purchase was not surprising, given its previously announced Bitcoin strategy. The news that GameStop, a leading video game retailer, would add bitcoin to its treasury reserve gained widespread attention, even in traditional media, due to GameStop’s global recognition following the events of the early 2020s. Acquiring bitcoin can be seen as a logical step for both Rumble and GameStop, as Bitcoin, being a natively digital asset, fits well with businesses operating in the digital space. It is also highly likely that other similar companies are currently considering bitcoin acquisitions.

The SEC dropping its lawsuit against Ripple and the launch of Solana futures by CME Group are both positive developments for the cryptocurrency market as a whole. The SEC’s actions indicate that the stance of U.S. securities regulators towards cryptocurrencies has become more favorable in recent times. Meanwhile, CME Group’s launch of Solana futures demonstrates growing institutional interest in cryptocurrencies beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum.


Ville Viitaharju
Cryptocurrency specialist