U.S. Bitcoin Reserve Plan Still Unsettled as Treasury, Commerce Vie for Control

The White House says the framework for a long-term federal bitcoin stockpile remains unresolved, 16 months after President Donald Trump directed his administration to establish it. Trump signed an executive order in March 2025 launching work on what he described as a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, along with a separate U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile for several other cryptocurrencies. Since then, federal agencies have reviewed what crypto the U.S. already holds but have declined to disclose the amount, and have been working on an approach to build out the funds. Bloomberg reported Monday that the plan has become more complicated as both the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Commerce have been floated as potential homes for the reserve, with each department making its case to oversee the effort. "President Trump campaigned on a vision of cementing America as the global capital of cryptocurrency and other cuttingedge technologies," White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said in a statement to CoinDesk. "To deliver on the president’s vision, the Trump administration continues to evaluate the best structure for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile." White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt and the prior holder of the role have said congressional support would be needed to fully underpin the creation and activation of the crypto funds. Executive orders do not carry the force of law, and no legislation has advanced, though related proposals have circulated in both the Senate and House of Representatives. If Republicans lose control of the House or both chambers in this year's midterm elections, the prospects for formalizing the concept in law would likely diminish. Even if the administration settles on a structure, it remains unclear whether it can formally transfer the government's bitcoin holdings — estimated at more than 300,000 BTC, or about $21 billion — into the reserve. The administration has framed the holdings as a long-term investment and labeled the initiative a strategic reserve, though it would differ from traditional strategic reserves because it is intended to be held for an extended period rather than deployed during market stress. When Trump issued the order, he instructed his team to identify ways to acquire additional bitcoin without using taxpayer funds. Several ideas have been discussed. Had the government begun buying when the directive was issued, Bloomberg noted purchases would have been made around $93,000 per bitcoin; BTC has since fallen by roughly a third to just above $64,000, with BTC priced at $64,143.36. The crypto industry largely treated the reserve as a foregone conclusion after Trump's announcement, leaving investors and lobbyists increasingly frustrated by the slow progress and uncertainty over whether the plan will ultimately materialize. Separately, Trump has accumulated personal bitcoin holdings worth more than $50 million, according to his recent financial disclosure.