Trump Signs Executive Order to Establish Govt Bitcoin Reserve, To Host Crypto Summit in White House- wna24

Washington: US President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to create a government reserve of bitcoin, this marks a pivotal step in the cryptocurrency’s potential mainstream acceptance.

David Sacks, Trump’s “crypto czar” said that this new executive order requires the US government to retain estimated 200,000 bitcoin it’s already seized in criminal and civil proceedings.

Sacks in a social media post wrote, “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,’”

Donald Trump is set to host the first ever “crypto summit” at White House on Friday, and will welcome cryptocurrency executives and investors, signaling a dramatic reversal for an industry that has faced regulatory scrutiny and skepticism from financial authorities.

Establishing a bitcoin reserve was one of several crypto-related promises Trump made on the campaign trail last year. Trump is also pushing Congress to pass industry-friendly legislation, and under his administration the Securities and Exchange Commission has started dropping enforcement actions it had taken against some major crypto companies.

The executive order also establishes a “US Digital Asset Stockpile” to hold seized cryptocurrencies beyond bitcoin. On Sunday, Trump sparked a brief surge in crypto prices after revealing plans for the government to hold lesser-known cryptocurrencies such as XRP, Solana, and Cardano.

The executive order mandates a “full accounting” of the government’s bitcoin holdings, which have never been fully audited. Sacks noted that the US government had sold around 195,000 bitcoins over the past decade for $366 million, a sum that would now be worth approximately $17 billion if retained.

Once a skeptic who said a few years ago that bitcoin “ seems like a scam,” Trump has embraced digital currencies and leaned into his unofficial role as the “ crypto president ” in ways that can both help the crypto industry and enrich himself and his family. Wealthy players in the crypto industry, who felt unfairly targeted by the Biden administration, spent heavily to help Trump win last year’s election.

Crypto prices soared after Trump’s victory last year, and when the price of bitcoin first crossed $100,000 in early December, Trump took credit and posted “YOU’RE WELCOME!!!” on social media.

Bitcoin is the oldest and most popular cryptocurrency. Created in response to the 2008 financial crisis by an anonymous person or persons, it has blossomed from an experiment by libertarian cryptography enthusiasts into an asset with a market cap of about $1.7 trillion.

While it hasn’t taken off as a way to pay for everyday things, bitcoin has found popularity as a store of value that’s not controlled by banks, governments, or other powerful entities.