Could a Bitcoin 'arms race' reshape global finance?

As governments and institutions pay closer attention to crypto, some experts believe a new financial battleground is emerging. Bilal Ahmed Mir, founder and CEO of digital asset management firm Carter Capital, sees 2025 as a year of major shifts—particularly when it comes to Bitcoin.

“Every country having a Bitcoin strategic reserve will put you on a path to financial dominance over other countries,” Mir told The Crypto Radio. He believes a race to stockpile Bitcoin could echo past geopolitical struggles over gold and oil.

Mir brings insights from both traditional finance and crypto. He founded Carter Capital in 2016 while working in London’s banking sector, then shifted to crypto full-time. In 2020, he moved the company to Dubai, witnessing its rise from a niche market to a global talking point.

One of crypto’s greatest strengths, Mir argues, is its accessibility. “Whether you are a hedge fund manager in New York or a 14-year-old student in Nigeria, as long as you have a smartphone, you have access to the same products at the same rates with the same degree of fairness and equality.”

Bitcoin reserves and the next market boom

Mir predicts that by the end of 2025, the US will establish a Bitcoin strategic reserve, prompting other nations to follow suit. If that happens, he sees Bitcoin hitting $150,000, with Ethereum at $7,000 and Solana reaching $800.

The idea of Bitcoin as a reserve asset is not entirely new, but Mir believes the landscape has changed. With increasing institutional adoption and regulatory clarity in major markets, Bitcoin could shift from being seen as a speculative asset to a core financial instrument.

“This could be similar to how the US positioned the dollar globally through the petro-dollar system and Euro-dollar system,” Mir explained, suggesting that Bitcoin reserves could become a key geopolitical strategy.

If Bitcoin does reach $150,000, it would mark one of its biggest surges yet, fueled not just by retail and institutional investment, but potentially by governments securing their own holdings.

The rise of stablecoins

While Bitcoin dominates the headlines, Mir sees stablecoins playing an even more significant role in reshaping global finance.

“The number one killer application in the whole of crypto,” he said, pointing to their growing use in cross-border payments and emerging markets. Mir predicts that at least one major bank and one major corporate entity will launch their own stablecoin in 2025, a move that could accelerate mainstream adoption.

Stablecoins have already proven their utility, particularly in economies with volatile currencies. With advancements in regulations and banking partnerships, Mir believes the sector will see rapid expansion, possibly making stablecoins the dominant form of digital payments in the near future.

Layer one blockchains

Not all blockchains will thrive in the coming years, Mir warned. He believes that the next phase of crypto will favor those that can support new, high-demand use cases.

“This time around, I think to succeed investing with layer ones, you need to be quite selective and flexible across all of them,” he said, highlighting AI, real-world asset tokenization, and decentralized physical infrastructure as key drivers of change.

Blockchains that can handle these applications efficiently will likely see higher developer adoption. Mir points to newcomers like Sui and Hype, which he believes offer more scalable and cost-effective solutions compared to older networks. With developers becoming increasingly selective, competition among layer one protocols is expected to intensify.

With Bitcoin reserves, stablecoin expansion, and a shift in blockchain dominance on the horizon, Mir sees 2025 as a defining moment for the crypto industry. Whether Bitcoin truly becomes a geopolitical asset, stablecoins reshape digital finance, or new blockchain networks emerge as dominant players, one thing is clear—crypto’s influence is only growing.

 

Listen to the whole interview on The Crypto Radio's live player or in the Thought Leaders podcast.