President Trump's Bitcoin (BTC) Reserve Plan Encounters Interagency Hurdles
President Trump’s plan for a Strategic Bitcoin (BTC) Reserve has encountered complications from competing government departments. Two agencies, the Treasury Department and the Commerce Department, are vying to oversee the initiative, raising questions about legal authority, according to Bloomberg.
The reserve was ordered last year to position the US as the crypto capital of the world. It was intended to be housed in the Treasury Department, funded by asset seizures and potential purchases. People familiar with the matter say that the Commerce Department could take charge of the Bitcoin trove. However, questions have arisen about whether the digital asset stack could be housed indefinitely, given BTC’s tendency to undergo wild price swings.
White House spokesperson Liz Huston stated: “President Trump campaigned on a vision of cementing America as the global capital of cryptocurrency and other cutting-edge technologies. To deliver on the president’s vision, the Trump administration continues to evaluate the best structure for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile.”
In a statement, the Justice Department said its Office of Legal Counsel “is working closely with both the Treasury and Commerce departments to determine legally available options to accomplish the president’s policy of establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve.”
Interagency dynamics now challenge the original structure, outlining the hurdles based on administration directives and departmental positions.