A brand new Home invoice launched Friday would lock in President Trump’s unprecedented govt order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, signaling the GOP’s deepening embrace of digital property as fiscal and geopolitical leverage instruments.
The invoice, H.R. 3798, sponsored by Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), goals to codify Govt Order 14233, signed by Trump.
The order halted federal Bitcoin auctions and directed companies to consolidate BTC holdings beneath Treasury’s administration. If enacted, the laws would make sure the long-term existence of a U.S. Bitcoin reserve and a Digital Asset Stockpile for seized altcoins, shielding this system from future repeal.
“It’s time we handled Bitcoin just like the strategic asset it’s,” Burchett mentioned in a press release.
From forfeiture to fortress
Over the previous decade, the U.S. authorities has amassed 198,000 BTC, at the moment valued at over $21.32 billion, by forfeitures linked to felony enforcement actions. Up to now, a lot of that Bitcoin was auctioned off, together with massive gross sales in 2014–2021 at fractions of at present’s costs.
These early auctions forfeited over $21 billion in upside positive aspects. EO 14233 and now Burchett’s invoice intention to cease the bleeding by treating the digital forex as a long-term strategic hedge moderately than liquidating it for short-term money.
“That is our digital Fort Knox,” Treasury Secretary Vivek Ramaswamy mentioned on the March rollout, promising “budget-neutral and innovation-positive” implementation.
Below the invoice, no taxpayer {dollars} could be spent to amass extra Bitcoin. As an alternative, BTC should come from future enforcement seizures, asset swaps, or market-neutral transfers. Altcoins acquired in comparable methods could be held in a separate “Digital Asset Stockpile,” which the Treasury may promote at its discretion.
The laws mandates inter-agency BTC transfers to Treasury custody and bars any gross sales with out presidential waiver, successfully nationalizing the U.S. authorities’s Bitcoin place until reversed by future laws.
A strategic hedge or digital gamble?
Supporters evaluate the reserve to a digital gold normal, a decentralized asset proof against inflation, geopolitical manipulation, or central financial institution defaults. The reserve’s proposed five-year goal is 1 million BTC, about 5% of the whole provide.
“That is our Louisiana Buy second,” mentioned Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), who plans to introduce a Senate companion invoice this week.
However critics argue that Bitcoin’s volatility and cybersecurity dangers make it a poor candidate for a nationwide strategic asset. Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), a vocal crypto skeptic, referred to as the invoice “crypto cosplay that dangers taxpayer {dollars} and international credibility” at an April Home Monetary Companies listening to.
The legislative push comes because the Federal Reserve continues exploring a CBDC, which Trump has vowed to dam. “Not on my watch,” the President mentioned on the Bitcoin 2024 convention final yr.
That convention additionally marked the primary public unveiling of the reserve idea, a marketing campaign promise that has since morphed into federal coverage, and now, presumably regulation. Presidential Govt Orders should not regulation until ratified by Congress.
With Bitcoin reaching an all-time excessive of $111,900 in Might and company treasuries rising BTC allocations, Burchett’s invoice faucets into rising perception in Bitcoin as a monetary backstop.
What Comes Subsequent
H.R. 3798 has been referred to the Home Monetary Companies Committee. Chair Patrick McHenry (R-NC) is anticipated to schedule a listening to this summer season, with Senate motion prone to observe.
How Treasury will securely handle BTC custody, whether or not by chilly wallets, multisig preparations, or third-party custodians, stays an open query.
Additionally it is unclear how reserve holdings would possibly have an effect on broader fiscal or financial coverage, together with debt ceiling negotiations or Federal Reserve collateral frameworks.
