President Trump signed an executive order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. The announcement came late Thursday from White House crypto advisor David Sacks.
"Just a few minutes ago, President Trump signed an Executive Order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve," Sacks stated. The reserve will include Bitcoin acquired through government asset forfeitures.
The federal government currently holds approximately 200,000 BTC, according to estimates. The executive order "directs a full accounting of the federal government's digital asset holdings," Sacks explained.
Sacks emphasized the long-term holding strategy. "The US will not sell any Bitcoin deposited into the Reserve. It will be kept as a store of value. The Reserve is like a digital Fort Knox for the cryptocurrency, often called 'digital gold'."
The government will not purchase additional cryptocurrency beyond what it obtains through forfeitures. This policy applies to Ethereum, XRP, Solana, and Cardano—altcoins Trump mentioned earlier this week.
Many industry executives criticized Trump's initial proposal on March 2. Prominent Bitcoin supporters dismissed the included altcoins as "shitcoins." Despite analysts calling the reserve strategy bullish, markets responded negatively.
Cryptocurrency markets lost more than $200 billion in value following the announcement. Total market capitalization fell below $3 trillion. Bitcoin dropped $5,000 within an hour, falling from approximately $90,000 to $85,000 before recovering to $87,000.
Other cryptocurrencies experienced steeper declines. Ethereum fell 5% to $2,150. XRP, Solana, and Cardano suffered losses of 8%, 7%, and 10% respectively.
Sacks defended the initiative as fulfilling campaign promises. "President Trump promised to create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile. Those promises have been kept," he concluded.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial or legal advice. Always conduct your own research or consult a professional when dealing with cryptocurrency assets.