The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve is already a reality.
It may not be everything some people expected.
The recent decision by the United States government regarding Bitcoin has generated mixed reactions, although it may not meet the expectations of some. President Trump signed an Executive Order to create a Strategic Reserve of Bitcoin, along with a National Digital Asset Accumulation. This implies that the U.S. government is beginning to consider Bitcoin as a reserve asset, similar to gold. However, there is no plan for the administration to purchase more Bitcoin.
According to the statement issued by the White House, the Strategic Reserve of Bitcoin will consist of cryptocurrencies that belong to the Department of the Treasury, obtained through civil or criminal forfeiture procedures. The order also states that "the United States will not sell the Bitcoin deposited in this Strategic Reserve, which will be maintained as a reserve of assets."
Furthermore, it is mentioned that the Secretaries of the Treasury and Commerce will be authorized to develop strategies that do not impose additional costs on American taxpayers to acquire more Bitcoin. Although the details of these strategies remain uncertain, some are optimistic about a potential future accumulation of Bitcoin by the government.
As for the National Digital Asset Accumulation, it includes "digital assets other than Bitcoin" that have also been confiscated. However, it is clear that the government does not plan to acquire more assets for this accumulation beyond what is obtained through forfeitures.
It is worth noting that, over the 15 years since Bitcoin's inception, its price has seen steady growth. This has led the U.S. government to miss out on significant profit opportunities by selling some of the acquired cryptocurrencies, costing taxpayers over $17 billion, according to the White House. Currently, it is estimated that the government still holds nearly 200,000 BTC. One of the objectives of the new government Cryptocurrency Working Group will be to audit and assess the exact amount of crypto assets it holds.
