President Donald Trump has signed an executive order creating a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a broader digital asset stockpile, according to White House AI and crypto policy advisor David Sacks.

The move aligns with a prediction made in early November 2024 by Samson Mow, CEO of JAN3, who forecasted that a Trump victory would lead to the creation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and the potential pardon of Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road.

Sacks announced the order in a March 7th post on X, stating that the Bitcoin reserve would be funded with assets forfeited to the government through legal proceedings.

Sacks described the Bitcoin reserve as a “digital Fort Knox,” emphasizing that the government does not plan to sell the Bitcoin stored in it. 

“It will be kept as a store of value.”

The executive order also grants authority to the Secretaries of Treasury and Commerce to explore ways to acquire more Bitcoin in a budget-neutral manner. 

“The Secretaries of Treasury and Commerce are authorized to develop budget-neutral strategies for acquiring additional Bitcoin, provided that those strategies have no incremental costs on American taxpayers,” the order states.

In addition to the Bitcoin reserve, the order establishes a “U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile,” which will include other digital assets obtained through forfeiture.

He also stated that the digital asset stockpile is intended for the “responsible stewardship of the government’s digital assets under the Treasury Department” and clarified that the government would not actively acquire additional digital assets beyond those obtained through forfeiture.

The order contrasts with Trump’s earlier remarks on Truth Social, where he suggested the reserve could include XRP, Solana, and Cardano. He later specified that Bitcoin and Ether would be the primary assets.

According to Arkham Intelligence, the U.S. government holds approximately $18.28 billion in seized cryptocurrency, with Bitcoin comprising the majority at 198,109 Bitcoin, valued at about $17.87 billion.

Sacks noted that no comprehensive audit of the federal government’s cryptocurrency holdings has been conducted, and the executive order directs a full review.

Arkham’s analysis indicates that aside from Bitcoin, the government’s largest holdings include $122 million in Tether and $119 million in Ether. The data suggests the U.S. does not currently hold XRP, Solana, or Cardano.

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