Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies extended gains Monday as traders digested U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest economic proposal of a $2,000 “tariff dividend” for every American, funded by import duties.
The plan, revealed on Truth Social, stimulated risk appetite even as some questioned its feasibility and potential inflationary fallout.
“A dividend of at least $2,000 per person (not counting high-income earners!) will be paid to everyone,” the message said, adding that those who oppose the tariffs are “FOOLS!” The rhetoric comes as budget debates in Washington heat up ahead of negotiations on the 2026 budget.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier this year that tariff revenue would be used to pay down the national debt, which now stands at nearly $38 trillion, although Trump’s latest comments suggest a populist trend toward direct cash transfers.
Although this proposal is unlikely to materialize without Congressional approval, markets are interpreting it as a further injection of fiscal easing. The idea of direct payments to households, even hypothetical, has reignited the same risk reflex that motivated digital assets during pandemic-era stimulus cycles.
Bitcoin rose 4.6% over 24 hours to $106,440, while Ether gained 6.1% to $3,618, according to CoinGecko data. XRP led the majors with a daily jump of 8.5% to $2.48, and Solana added 6.1% to $167.96.
The overall crypto market cap soared to around $3.5 trillion, with around $113 billion in 24-hour volumes, an unusually high figure for Sunday trading.
XRP’s rally followed Canary Capital’s third pre-effective S-1 amendment for its proposed Canary XRP ETF, which would be listed on Nasdaq under the symbol XRPC.
The trust will hold XRP with Gemini and BitGo, compared to the New York CoinDesk XRP CCIXber 60m rate.
Whether the “tariff dividend” becomes law or just another campaign talking point, traders appear happy to once again take the lead in the liquidity discourse.
