U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Stalled for Over a Year as Treasury and Commerce Departments Battle Over Control

Sixteen months after President Donald Trump ordered the creation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, the initiative remains stalled. The Treasury and Commerce departments are locked in a jurisdictional dispute over custody, with Treasury officials questioning their legal authority to manage digital assets. Meanwhile, the U.S. government holds over 300,000 bitcoin worth upwards of $20 billion. Bipartisan lawmakers have introduced bills like the BITCOIN Act to codify the reserve, but no legislation has advanced.

Strategic Bitcoin Reserve implementation delays

• ▪The Treasury Department's 60-day evaluation of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve remains undelivered as of July 2026, more than a year past its deadline
• ▪President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14233 on March 6, 2025, to establish the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a separate U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile

Treasury-Commerce jurisdictional dispute

• ▪The Treasury Department and Commerce Department are locked in an interagency dispute over which agency has the authority to manage and control the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
• ▪The Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel is working with both the Treasury and Commerce departments to identify legally available options for the reserve's structure

Congressional authorization requirements

• ▪The American Reserve Modernization Act, introduced in May 2026, would require the government to hold its bitcoin for at least 20 years unless sold to reduce the national debt
• ▪White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt and other officials have stated that congressional legislation is required to fully authorize and activate the crypto reserve

Bitcoin price volatility concerns

• ▪Bitcoin's price dropped by about a third from around $93,000 when President Donald Trump first called for the reserve to just above $64,000 in July 2026
• ▪Concerns have arisen over whether the federal government can legally hold bitcoin for an indefinite period given the asset's price volatility

Lummis-Begich legislative proposal

• ▪The proposed Lummis-Begich legislation directs the Treasury and Commerce departments to use budget-neutral strategies that do not draw on taxpayer money
• ▪Senator Cynthia Lummis and Representative Nick Begich introduced a bill to codify the reserve and set a target of acquiring 1 million bitcoin over five years

Government bitcoin holdings valuation

• ▪The White House stated that premature sales of seized bitcoin have cost United States taxpayers approximately $17 billion over the years
• ▪The United States government is estimated to hold more than 300,000 bitcoin, worth about $21 billion at July 2026 prices, though federal agencies have declined to disclose the exact figure