Washington DC (US): United States President Donald Trump declared his administration’s commitment to ending the federal government’s “war on crypto” and announced the creation of a ‘Strategic Bitcoin Reserve’. The move aims to position the U.S. as a global leader in the cryptocurrency sector.
Addressing the Crypto Summit at the White House, Trump criticized former President Joe Biden‘s stringent actions against cryptocurrencies, describing them as excessive and counterproductive.
“My administration is working to end the federal bureaucracies’ war on crypto which was really going pretty wildly during Biden until the election came about. 5 months before the elections he became a big fan because he heard how many people love it and respect it but I guess it didn’t work out for him,” Trump remarked.
On Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order to establish the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, making the federal government the largest holder of Bitcoin in the U.S.
“Last year, I promised to make America the Bitcoin superpower of the world and the crypto capital of the planet, and we’re taking historic action to deliver on that promise. Yesterday, I signed an executive order officially creating our strategic Bitcoin reserve,” Trump stated. “The federal government is already amongst the largest holders of Bitcoin, one of the largest holders in the world. These existing holdings formed the foundation of the new reserve.”
Trump also criticized the Biden administration’s decision to sell large amounts of Bitcoin, calling it a “foolish” move.
“Unfortunately, in recent years, the US government has foolishly sold tens of thousands of additional Bitcoin that was worth billions and billions of dollars had they not sold them, but they did sell them, mostly during the Biden administration,” he said.
To expand the federal Bitcoin holdings without burdening taxpayers, Trump has directed the Treasury and Commerce Departments to explore new strategies.
“The Treasury and Commerce Department will also explore new pathways to accumulate additional Bitcoin holdings for the reserve provided it’s done at no cost to the taxpayers. We don’t want any cost to the taxpayers,” Trump emphasized. “In addition, my order directs federal agencies to conduct an inventory of all crypto assets currently held by the US government and determine how they can be transformed to the treasury.”
Alongside the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, the executive order also established a US Digital Asset Stockpile under the Treasury Department to manage other cryptocurrencies and digital assets, according to a report by CNN.
The move is seen as a significant shift in the U.S. government’s stance on cryptocurrencies, aiming to secure the nation’s leadership in the emerging digital finance landscape.