Bitcoin News Today: U.S. Treasury to Build Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Using Forfeited Assets

Generated by AI AgentCoin World
Friday, Aug 15, 2025 11:24 am ET1min read
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Aime RobotAime Summary

- U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will use forfeited BTC as its core asset, reversing earlier statements.

- The initiative aligns with President Trump’s vision to establish U.S. leadership in Bitcoin, supported by budget-neutral strategies like staking seized altcoins.

- Pro-Bitcoin lawmakers like Senator Cynthia Lummis advocate for expanding the reserve via legislation, including gold revaluation as a funding mechanism.

- Market reactions and crypto community backlash influenced Bessent’s reversal, with analysts noting potential long-term impacts on Bitcoin’s institutional adoption.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has clarified the foundation of the Strategic

Bitcoin
Reserve, stating that Bitcoin forfeited to the federal government will serve as its core [1]. This follows a reversal from earlier remarks in which Bessent stated there were no plans to buy BTC for the reserve [2]. His recent comments, shared via X, align with President Trump’s vision to position the U.S. as a global leader in Bitcoin [3].

The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve was established through an executive order issued by Trump in March 2025 [4]. Bessent emphasized the Treasury’s commitment to exploring budget-neutral methods to expand the reserve, such as using yield-bearing assets obtained through confiscation [5]. These include altcoins like

Ethereum
(ETH) and
BNB
, which the government can stake to generate revenue for further Bitcoin purchases without increasing federal spending [6]. Dennis Porter, CEO of the Satoshi Action Fund, has proposed a similar strategy to leverage these yields for acquiring more Bitcoin [7].

Support for this shift has come from pro-Bitcoin lawmakers, including Senator Cynthia Lummis, who endorsed the idea of a budget-neutral approach [8]. Lummis also introduced the BITCOIN Act, a bill that would mandate the U.S. to buy 1 million BTC over five years for the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve [9]. She suggested that revaluing the U.S. gold reserves could provide a funding mechanism for the initiative [10].

Bessent’s reversal appears to have been influenced by backlash from the crypto community over his earlier comments [11]. At the time of his statement, Bitcoin was trading at approximately $118,800, a decline of over 3% in the previous 24 hours [12]. Analysts note that continued government interest in Bitcoin could influence long-term market sentiment [13].

The renewed engagement with Bitcoin by the Treasury reflects a broader shift in the U.S. approach to digital assets [14]. While specific acquisition strategies remain under development, the commitment to budget-neutral pathways signals a strategic and cautious approach to expanding the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve [15].

Source:

[1] Bitcoinist.com (https://bitcoinist.com/the-strategic-bitcoin-reserve/)

[2] Yahoo Finance (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/bessent-backtracks-bitcoin-treasury-committed-201757732.html)

[3] Mitrade (https://www.mitrade.com/insights/news/live-news/article-3-1043049-20250815)

[4] Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2025/08/15/treasury-secretary-reveals-us-bitcoin-surprise-triggering-price-shockwaves/)

[5] MSN (https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/the-u-s-treasury-may-buy-more-bitcoin-for-its-strategic-bitcoin-reserve/ar-AA1KyPul)

[6] Bitcoin.com (https://news.bitcoin.com/treasury-secretary-confirms-us-to-acquire-bitcoin-for-reserve-via-budget-neutral-tactics/)

[7] Satoshi Action Fund (via X)

[8] Yahoo Finance (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/treasury-chief-bessent-reverses-stance-230703263.html)

[9] Mitrade (https://www.mitrade.com/insights/news/live-news/article-3-1043438-20250815)

[10] FastBull (https://m.fastbull.com/news-detail/treasury-secretary-confirms-us-to-acquire-bitcoin-for-4339772_0)

[12] CoinMarketCap (via Bitcoinist.com)

[13] TradingView (https://www.tradingview.com/news/cointelegraph:0050c9412094b:0-us-treasury-s-scott-bessent-backpedals-bitcoin-buying-still-possible/)