Turns Out Bitcoin Isn't Dollar's Nemesis—It's Just Vibing With It Instead

Bitcoin and the US dollar are basically besties, according to Sam Lyman, head of research at the Bitcoin Policy Institute. Yep, the supposed financial apocalypse machine is out here holding hands with the very fiat currency it was supposedly built to destroy. Who said crypto couldn't be dramatic?

In an interview with Cointelegraph, Lyman explained that dollar-pegged stablecoins and Bitcoin share a "symbiotic" relationship, mutually benefitting from rising adoption. "Bitcoin is beneficial to the US system because the largest Bitcoin trading pair is BTC/USD," he said, pointing to Tether's USDT stablecoin, backed by cash deposits and short-term US government debt. Basically, the world's most rebellious asset is trading predominantly in the dollar's playground—and everyone's surprisingly okay with it.

"There is a symbiotic relationship between BTC and the dollar system because BTC is most frequently traded in dollars," Lyman added. "I do see those things as being mutually reinforcing, which runs contrary to the narrative around BTC that it would actually undermine the dollar." Sorry, maxi doomers—turns out the orange coin might just be the dollar's wingman rather than its executioner.

Lyman drew a parallel between Bitcoin and the petrodollar system. Under that arrangement, which began in the early 1970s, international oil sales are priced in dollars, driving more demand for the currency. He suggested dollar-backed stablecoins play a similar role for Bitcoin. So instead of oil, we now have degens trading memes—and somehow the dollar is still winning. The empire strikes back, but make it digital.

He urged US lawmakers to keep developing stablecoin regulations under the GENIUS regulatory framework without deviating from its core principles, arguing this would strengthen and protect US dollar hegemony while keeping the US competitive geopolitically. Basically, don't fumble the bag, Congress—stablecoins are basically the dollar's new sugar babies keeping it relevant in the Web3 era.

On the China front, Lyman noted that the People's Republic has "banned" Bitcoin and stablecoins multiple times because both pose a "tremendous threat" to the government's capital controls—a critical component of China's economy. Nothing says "we're scared" quite like repeatedly banning something and then banning it again for good measure.

"The entire Chinese economy depends on capital controls. China is able to keep money within the country by preventing its elite from moving money out of the country," he explained. Imagine building a massive wall around your wealthy people's wallets. Very secure. Very 1984. Very effective at keeping the party in power.

This explains why China reaffirmed its stablecoin ban in 2025, opting instead to launch the digital yuan, a yield-bearing CBDC designed to control capital flows and grab a larger slice of the forex market. Nothing says "innovation" like banning decentralized alternatives and rolling out your own centrally controlled version. Freedom tastes like government-issued digital tokens, apparently.

Here's the kicker