President Donald Trump signed an order Thursday to create a federal Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, signaling new federal support for cryptocurrency in general and Bitcoin in particular.
"The Reserve will be capitalized with Bitcoin owned by the federal government that was forfeited as part of criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings. This means it will not cost taxpayers a dime," White House crypto czar David Sacks said on social media. "The U.S. will not sell any bitcoin deposited into the Reserve. It will be kept as a store of value. The Reserve is like a digital Fort Knox for the cryptocurrency often called 'digital gold.'"
The order calls for all federal Bitcoin seizures to be placed in the reserve, and directs the Secretaries of Commerce and the Treasury to "develop budget-neutral strategies for acquiring additional bitcoin," so long as the efforts don't cost taxpayer money. Other digital assets may also be stored in the reserve.
There are no precise measures of how much Bitcoin is under U.S. government control, but some estimates put the number at near 200,000, much of it seized from the illicit online drug marketplace Silk Road. At current market values that reserve may be worth close to $20 billion.
The order calls for a close audit of crypto holdings under U.S. control.
RELATED STORY | Trump launches '$TRUMP' meme coin days before his inauguration
President Trump has recently intensified his support of cryptocurrency and pro-crypto policies, including by launching a meme coin — a type of cryptocurrency that generally has little to no value — just days before his inauguration. That currency has a market cap of less than $100,000, but its volatility has seen it at highs of more than $14 billion.
President Trump controls some 80% of the meme coin holdings. Those ties have generated criticism, including from within Congress, of potential corruption and conflicts of interest.
