The president said it refers to an effort to end Biden’s “Operation Chalk Point 2.0” and block banking services to crypto companies.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said on March 7 that he is exploring ways to invest in Bitcoin to prepare for national strategy, which will be established through his new executive order.
He made the presentation at the first White House Script Summit, attended by leading figures in the digital asset industry.
“The federal government is already one of the biggest owners of Bitcoin,” Trump said during a roundtable discussion at the summit.
He mentioned the $200,000 Bitcoin tokens that the US government currently holds after it was seized through criminal forfeiture.
“These existing holdings will form the basis for new reserves,” Trump said.
“The Ministry of Finance and Commerce will also explore new routes to accumulate additional Bitcoin holdings for the reserve, if they are free to taxpayers.”
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Trump criticized the Biden administration for selling key cryptocurrency holdings, saying, “From today, America follows the rules that all Bitcoin (owners) know well: “Never sell your Bitcoin.”
During the 2024 election campaign, Trump fully embraced the cryptocurrency industry and promised the United States to become the “crypto capital of the world.” This marked a dramatic change from his stance during his first term.
Back at the White House, he quickly signed an executive order aimed at strengthening US leadership in digital assets and financial technology.
Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
On March 6, he also signed an executive order to establish a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve,” a national stockpile similar to the US gold reserve that can be tapped for future use.
“Bitcoin is the original cryptocurrency,” the executive order said. “The Bitcoin Protocol has forever capped the total supply of Bitcoin (BTC) with 21 million coins and has never been hacked. As a result of its rarity and security, Bitcoin is often referred to as “digital gold.” With a fixed supply of BTC, there is a strategic advantage to being in one of the first countries to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve. ”
According to David Sacks, Trump’s special advisor to AI and Crypto, the federal government has won around 400,000 Bitcoin over the past decade.
If they were kept, they would be worth $17 billion today, he told White House reporters on March 7.
He said the remaining Bitcoin numbers are around 200,000, which are pending audits.
“We think the best way to maintain that value is to store these Bitcoins for the long term,” he said.
“Bitcoin has often been called digital gold. What we do in our reserves is effectively creating digital Fort Knox to protect digital gold.”
According to the order, within 30 days of issuance, agencies should consider the authority to transfer government-held Bitcoin into this strategic preparation.
Some industry leaders have suggested that the US should actively purchase Bitcoin for spares. Some speculate that the government could sell a portion of the gold at Fort Knox to buy Bitcoin.
When asked whether the government would consider selling gold to buy Bitcoin, Sachs said: “No, there was no conversation about it. I see people speculating about it online.”
“It’s up to the Secretary of Treasury and then the Secretary of Commerce and it’s going to determine if there’s an additional budget-neutral approach to Bitcoin Reserve,” he said. “But we don’t have a conversation about what they are.”
“Some people have really suffered.”
Many well-known figures from the Cryptocurrency Industry took part in the White House event. These include MicroStrategy executive Michael Saylor, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Robinhood Head Vladimir Tenev.
Trump gave guests a warm welcome and said, “I know that many of you have fought for this for years. It’s an honor to be with you in the White House.”
He said under the previous administration, regulators would target the industry, pressure banks to close accounts for crypto businesses and entrepreneurs, and block transfers to and from exchanges.
The Biden administration has increased crackdowns on the crypto industry to combat money laundering and other crimes. Some of these efforts have sparked controversy.
“All of that will be over soon, and we are finishing Operation ChokePoint 2.0,” Trump noted the regulator’s efforts to remove the sector.
“Some people were really suffering. What they were doing was ridiculous.”
“I am writing today as President Trump’s “crypto Czar” to request information on how you dealt with your own conflict of interest and how you addressed how the president and other individuals selectively pump certain crypto assets, remove cryptocurrency enforcement measures, and directly benefit from the Trump administration’s efforts to develop the cryptocurrency industry.
