White House Announces Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Plans

An announcement on the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve is coming in the next few weeks, Patrick Witt said on stage at Consensus Miami 2026. S. Marshals Service as proof that federal crypto holdings need better safeguarding.

U.S. government digital-asset accounts. On-chain investigator ZachXBT claimed a hacker stole more than $60 million in late 2025, including funds from government seizure wallets.

"It's a case in point for why it was so necessary that the president established the SBR, and that he instructed the agencies to take these assets very seriously and properly safeguard them," Witt said. -held bitcoin and other digital assets has been running in the background for months.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for bitcoin and other crypto assets to be set aside in long-term holdings.

Following that order, the White House halted fire-sale liquidations under the previous administration and started auditing what crypto each agency was holding. "We've heard stories and confirmed some of them of cold wallets that were being stored in drawers of desks in various agencies," Witt said.

Much of the staff work has gone into general-counsel-level questions about which authorities allow agencies to hold the assets, for how long, and whether they are subject to congressional clawback.

"This really hadn't been explored until the president signed the executive order," he added. Witt declined to disclose the size of federal crypto holdings. "Number one is we want to get our own house in order.

We want to properly safeguard, custody these assets before we discuss any details around it," he said. 09 at the time of the CoinDesk article's publication. The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve still needs to be codified through legislation.

Sen. S. Senate. Rep. S. House of Representatives. Witt clarified that the reserve will not absorb every newly seized asset automatically.

Crypto seized in active legal proceedings sits in pending status until forfeiture is finalized. Assets potentially returned to victims through restitution before being moved to the bitcoin reserve or the separate stockpile for other crypto assets.