The tariff policy of U.S. President Trump is reshaping the global trade landscape with unprecedented force, and it has also brought a "test of ice and fire" to the Crypto Assets market. In July 2025, the Trump administration took frequent actions: reaching an agreement with Japan to impose a 15% tariff, while gaining a $550 billion investment; at the same time, imposing a 19% tariff on goods from the Philippines and Indonesia. These policies seem to offer short-term benefits for the U.S., but analysts point out that in the long run, they will weaken the U.S. economy and trigger a trust crisis among allies, instead pushing funds from U.S. debt towards Asian markets and the Crypto Assets field.
Policy Turbulence and Market Volatility: Capital Migration Amidst Liquidation Waves
Trump’s tariff policy has become a core driving factor for volatility in the crypto assets market. In the dramatic market fluctuations following the policy announcement, nearly 160,000 people globally experienced liquidations within 24 hours on July 19, with a total liquidation amount reaching $587 million, including $360 million in short liquidations and $220 million in long liquidations. This high volatility reflects that policy sensitivity has become a new label for crypto assets.
The deeper impact lies in the change of capital flow paths. As tariff policies weaken the appeal of dollar assets, institutional funds are accelerating their entry into the crypto field: the listed company Strategy recently increased its holdings by 6,220 BTC, with total holdings surpassing 600,000 coins, and unrealized gains reaching as high as $28.1 billion; at the same time, some hedge funds are beginning to shift their funds towards decentralized trading platforms, with the number of whale users (holding over 1,000 BTC) on XBIT increasing by 15% within a week. This trend validates analysts’ views—declining attractiveness of U.S. Treasury bonds will be a long-term positive for crypto assets.
Transformation of Regulatory Framework: From the GENIUS Act to the Rise of Decentralization
While tariff policies are causing market turbulence, the U.S. crypto regulatory framework is undergoing historic breakthroughs:
- Legalization of Stablecoins: On July 19, Trump signed the GENIUS Act, requiring stablecoins to be backed by U.S. dollars or government bonds. Giants like JPMorgan and PayPal have already launched stablecoin pilot programs.
- Clarification of Regulatory Authority: The CLARITY Act clearly classifies decentralized tokens as commodities, regulated by the CFTC, for XRP As the tokens clear regulatory hurdles, their prices soared 18% to $3.64 on July 18.
- Anti-CBDC stance: The National Defense Authorization Act includes a provision prohibiting the Federal Reserve from issuing digital dollars without Congressional approval, reinforcing the legitimacy of decentralized finance.
This series of policies has accelerated the integration of traditional finance with the Crypto Assets ecosystem and has also led to the explosion of decentralized platforms. In the past week, the search volume for "decentralized exchanges" surged by 120%, and platforms like XBIT that support on-chain transparent transactions have become a safe haven for funds.
Differentiation in Coin Performance: The Hedging Logic of Stablecoins and RWA
In the market fluctuations caused by tariffs, different categories of crypto assets exhibit significant differences:
- Stablecoins and RWA demonstrate strong resilience: One week after the tariff policy was implemented, the RWA sector only dropped by 3.1%, far less than the over 10% decline of other crypto assets; the trading volume of tokenized gold exceeded 1 billion USD in a single week, with PAXG trading volume surging by 900%.
- Divergence in mainstream coins’ technical performance: Bitcoin hovered around 118,684 USD on July 23, with several analysts pointing out that it must hold the support level of 117,400 USD to target 131,200 USD; Ethereum’s RSI entered the overbought zone, with a pullback to the 3,200-3,400 USD range seen as an ideal buying point.
- Abnormal movements in platform coins and altcoins: BNB broke through 800 USD on July 23, setting a new historical high; the ZORA token, integrated by the Base APP, has risen nearly 300% since July 17.
Investor Strategy: Three Major Opportunities Under Dynamic Balance
Faced with the dual variables of tariff policies and regulatory changes, savvy investors have adjusted their layout strategies:
- Position Management: Avoid full position operations, it is recommended to maintain a maximum of 70% position, against BNB Take profit in batches for urgent rising coins (e.g., reduce holdings by 30%)
- Focus on sectors: Increase holdings in coin types with real application scenarios (e.g., XRP for cross-border payments, SOL for efficient clearing); allocate RWA assets with anti-inflation properties (tokenized gold)
- Utilize DeFi arbitrage: Build a new paradigm for tariff arbitrage through dynamic collateral rate adjustments and cross-border stablecoin settlements using DeFi protocols.
Future Outlook
Trump’s tariff policy is like a double-edged sword – the short-term market fluctuations it triggered, exemplified by the warning of risk from the $376 million liquidation on July 23, have accelerated the migration of funds from traditional finance to the encryption world. With the implementation of the GENIUS Act and the advancement of the CLARITY Act, the compliance of stablecoins and the clarification of regulations for decentralized tokens have paved the way for institutional funds. In this tariff storm of 2025, strategies that combine RWA asset allocation with DeFi dynamic arbitrage are becoming the new moat for savvy investors.
