Congressman Bought Bitcoin, Solana, XRP In December — And Didn't HODL: A Look At Missed Profits By Selling Before BTC All-Time Highs

Leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin BTC/USD hit new all-time highs this week, a positive for investors who have been buying and holding crypto for years or newer investors who have bought crypto or Bitcoin ETFs in recent months.

One member of Congress likely isn't smiling when looking at the Bitcoin chart, as he cashed out too early.

What Happened: Members of Congress are currently free to buy and sell stocks, options, ETFs and cryptocurrency as long as they properly disclose their transactions within 45 days.

A recent disclosure from Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-Pa.) shows the Congressman bought Bitcoin, Solana SOL/USD and XRP Token XRP/USD in December and sold the crypto months later in April and May.

As tracked by the Benzinga Government Trades page, Reschenthaler bought $1,000 to $15,000 worth of each of XRP and Solana on Dec. 11 and bought $1,000 to $15,000 worth of Bitcoin on Dec. 24.

The Congressman sold his Bitcoin and XRP on April 24 and sold his Solana on May 12.

Here's a look at the trading ranges of the cryptocurrencies on the dates that Reschenthaler made his purchases:

• XRP, Dec. 11: $2.24 to $2.47
• SOL, Dec. 11: $211.99 to $230.50
• BTC, Dec. 24: $93,448.02 to $99,404.06

Based on those daily ranges on the dates of purchase, here is a look at how much crypto Reschenthaler could have purchased, assuming he invested the full $15,000:

• XRP: 6,072.87 to 6,696.43
• SOL: 65.08 to 70.76
• BTC: 0.1509 to 0.1605

Based on the amount of crypto the Congressman could have purchased and the daily range for the crypto prices, here is a look at what his sale amounts looked like:

• XRP: $12,874.48 to $14,933.04
• SOL: $11,003.08 to $12,804.02
• BTC: $13,837.03 to $15,089.60

A look at the math above shows Reschenthaler likely lost money on all three cryptocurrencies he bought and sold, with the potential of making a small profit on Bitcoin if he bought at the lowest price on Dec. 24 and sold at the highest price on April 24.

Did You Know?

• Congress Is Making Huge Investments. Get Tips On What They Bought And Sold With Our Easy-to-Use Tool

Why It's Important: Now, consider if Reschenthaler had done what many cryptocurrency investors do and kept his crypto for the long run. Today, the values would be much higher.

Here are the values of Reschenthaler's former BTC, SOL and XRP stakes based on the prices at the time of writing listed below:

• XRP, $2.37: $14,392.70 to $15,870.54
• SOL, $180.81: $11,767.11 to $12,794.12
• BTC, $109,730.02: $16,558.26 to $17,611.67

Reschenthaler may not have made more by holding his Solana until now and likely would have made only a slightly larger profit or loss by holding XRP until today. However, the real change in value comes with Bitcoin.

The congressman would be up on his Bitcoin trade had he held until today, while selling in April likely meant he lost money on his December trade.

Bitcoin hit all-time highs of $111,970.17 on May 22 and many analysts and experts see the leading cryptocurrency going higher by the end of 2025 and into the future.

While it's unclear why Reschenthaler sold after such a short time holding the cryptocurrency, it could be an important lesson in the volatility of cryptocurrency.

Cryptocurrency prices can fluctuate from month to month and sometimes it takes more than four or five months to see crypto return to new highs.

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