Bessent Says U.S. Will Stop Bitcoin Sales, Add Seized BTC to Reserve

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent offered one of the clearest public explanations to date of the Trump administration’s approach to the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) and broader digital-asset policy framework, saying the government has halted all Bitcoin sales and will continue adding seized BTC to federal holdings once legal proceedings are complete. 

His comments came during a recent interview in which he was pressed on the future of America’s Bitcoin strategy and the political tensions surrounding high-profile crypto seizures.

The remarks arrive at a pivotal moment: the United States now controls hundreds of thousands of BTC across various agencies, and implementation of the 2025 executive order establishing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile has proceeded more slowly than expected due to interagency legal constraints.

Administration Reverses Prior Approach, Digital Assets Are Coming “Onshore”

Speaking in an interview today, Bessent emphasized that the administration is determined to position the United States as the world’s leading regulatory jurisdiction for digital assets, highlighting recent bipartisan legislative wins such as the Genius Act, which is the first comprehensive federal stablecoin statute.

“We want to be the best regulatory regime for digital assets and creativity to spark innovation,” Bessent said, drawing a distinction from what he described as the prior administration’s “extinction-event” approach to crypto companies.

The comments reflect a broader policy shift since 2024: rather than pushing crypto activity offshore through enforcement-heavy measures, the White House and Treasury are now presenting digital-asset engagement as an element of economic competitiveness.

Seized Bitcoin Will Be Added to Federal Reserves — Not Sold

Asked directly about the growing volume of Bitcoin seized in federal cases, including recent actions in the Southern District of New York involving developers linked to Tornado Cash,  Bessent avoided specific legal commentary but confirmed the government’s policy direction.

“If anything was seized, I believe it would have been seized from the founders,” he said. “And the policy of this government is to add seized Bitcoin to our digital asset reserve after the damages are done.”

He underscored that the first step in implementing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve was to “stop selling,” a major reversal from years of U.S. Marshals Service auctions that periodically disposed of billions of dollars in seized BTC.

The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve: From Executive Order to Slow Implementation

The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, created under a March 2025 executive order, designates Bitcoin as a long-term strategic asset similar to gold or petroleum stockpiles. Under current policy:

• Bitcoin placed in the SBR cannot be sold.

• Additions currently come almost exclusively from asset forfeitures.

• Specific guidelines for custody, reporting, and interagency coordination remain in development.

Meanwhile, the Digital Asset Stockpile, a companion program, is intended to hold non-Bitcoin crypto assets such as ETH, XRP, and SOL that enter federal ownership through enforcement or penalties.

Yet, despite the legal framework being in place, full operationalization has been delayed by what one White House advisor previously described as “obscure legal provisions” involving the Department of Justice, Treasury, and the Office of Legal Counsel.

Balancing Policy, Politics, and Innovation

Bessent’s comments indicate the administration wants to thread a needle: enforce existing law, encourage onshore digital-asset growth, and preserve seized Bitcoin as part of a national strategic hedge.

He avoided definitive statements about future Bitcoin purchases, an area where new congressional authority would likely be required. Current law allows the reserve to grow primarily through seizures, not market acquisitions.