Trump Administration Seeks to Build Largest U.S. Bitcoin Reserve

Tags: bitcoin, donald trump, reserve, us

Key Takeaways:

• The Trump administration aims to acquire as much Bitcoin as possible for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
• The White House has indicated support for legislation that would mandate the purchase of up to one million BTC.
• U.S. Treasury officials have begun discussions with crypto custody firms on safeguarding the reserve.

A senior White House official has confirmed that the Trump administration is intent on acquiring significant amounts of Bitcoin to establish a national strategic reserve. Speaking at a private roundtable hosted by the Bitcoin Policy Institute, Bo Hines, executive director of the Presidential Working Group on Digital Assets, stated that the administration sees no limit to the amount of Bitcoin the U.S. should hold.

The White House’s Vision for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

During the closed-door meeting, attended by key figures in the crypto industry, Hines was asked about the potential scale of the government’s Bitcoin acquisitions. He reportedly responded that asking how much Bitcoin the U.S. should hold was like asking how many dollars a country would need.

A White House official later confirmed Hines’ statement, adding that any government Bitcoin acquisitions would be executed in a “budget-neutral” manner, ensuring that taxpayers would not bear the financial burden.

Comprising notable guests including Michael Saylor, co-founder of MicroStrategy; Fred Thiel, CEO of Marathon Digital; Nathan McCauley, CEO of Anchorage Digital; and David Bailey, CEO of Bitcoin Magazine, the roundtable was part of a bigger “Bitcoin for America” policy conference. Additionally, present were senators Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), and Bernie Moreno (R-OH); all of them have been vocal advocates of Bitcoin policy in the US government.

Legislative Push: The Bitcoin Act

Reintroduced recently by Senator Cynthia Lummis, the Bitcoin Act is a legislative proposal calling for the U.S. government to buy up to one million Bitcoin, valued about $80 billion. The measure also aims to formally establish the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve President Trump created his most recent executive order.
Regarding the measure, Hines answered that the government supports initiatives to enshine the reserve into law by deferring to Senator Lummis. A White House spokesman subsequently emphasized, though, that Hines did not specifically support any particular legislation during the event.

The measure suggests financing the Bitcoin purchases by revaluating the gold certificates of the Federal Reserve, last valued in 1971 upon the U.S.’s gold standard abandonment. Since then, gold prices have climbed by more than 6,800%, maybe releasing large sums of money without directly affecting the federal budget. 

Treasury of United States interacts with crypto custodians 

The U.S. Treasury Department has started talking with major crypto custody companies about safeguarding the government’s digital asset holdings as the administration advances with its Bitcoin approach. Sources familiar with the subject disclosed that Anchorage Digital was among the companies that visited Treasury officials to address security issues for holding Bitcoin on behalf of the federal government. 

Although Anchorage CEO Nathan McCauley admitted that these conversations were transpired, he refrained to offer particular information regarding the possible involvement of crypto custodians in government policies. 

The U.S. government is thought to have about 200,000 BTC at present, mostly obtained through civil and criminal asset forfeitures. Should Lummis’s bill pass, this figure might rise five-fold, perhaps becoming the United States among the biggest institutional holders of Bitcoin worldwide. 

The wider picture: ramifications for American crypto policy 

The great interest of the government in Bitcoin indicates a major change in American policy about digital assets. Under earlier regulatory leadership, especially under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the government mostly sought enforcement proceedings against crypto companies rather than trying to include digital assets into the national financial strategy. 

Should the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve become legislation, it might create a new standard for how the US government interacts with digital assets, therefore impacting world financial regulations. Proponents contend that this action will establish the United States as a leader in Bitcoin acceptance, while detractors wonder whether government participation into Bitcoin markets might have unanticipated financial effects. 

With the Trump administration pressing down on Bitcoin, the next months will be crucial in deciding whether this bold agenda defines American economic policy.