At the digital asset summit on March 19, Senator Cynthia Lummis dropped a bombshell: The Biden administration may have sold off a significant portion of the U.S. seized Bitcoin reserves.
Lummis is a strong advocate for Bitcoin, pushing for its inclusion in the U.S. financial system and proposing a (Bitcoin bill) that suggests the federal government acquire 1 million Bitcoins over the next five years as a means of value storage similar to gold reserves.
How much Bitcoin has the Biden administration sold?
Lummis revealed that the U.S. government may have accumulated around 200,000 Bitcoins through asset seizures, but the previous Biden administration may have sold off a significant portion of that. Her office has formally requested an investigation from the U.S. Marshals Service and has spoken with former Attorney General Pam Bondi to try to confirm how much Bitcoin remains with the federal government.
Lummis openly criticized the federal government's accounting issues: "This should be easy to clarify. Why is the number of credit cards issued by a federal agency twice the number of employees? The federal government's failure in simple accounting and business practices is shocking and unforgivable."
Summit promotes Bitcoin reserve plan
Additionally, at the summit, Congressman Tom Emmer (R-MN) revealed that Congress is reviewing multiple bills aimed at establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve. He confidently stated, "I believe this bill will be implemented before the end of this Congress."
Meanwhile, Bo Hines, executive director of the President's Advisory Council on Digital Assets, also spoke in an interview about the history of Bitcoin seizures in the U.S. He revealed that the government originally held about 400,000 Bitcoins but later sold half of that seized for $370 million, which, at current valuations, is worth nearly $17 billion.
Hines emphasized that the White House's goal is to expand the Bitcoin reserve in a "budget-neutral" manner, without imposing additional tax burdens on taxpayers. He also mentioned that an internal working group is exploring how to achieve this goal, even proposing the idea of "creating a digital Fort Knox for America" (similar to how the U.S. stores a large amount of gold reserves in Fort Knox, Kentucky).
In summary, although the Biden administration may have sold off most of the Bitcoin reserves, both Congress and the White House are actively pushing for the establishment of a strategic Bitcoin reserve plan. Will Bitcoin become America's "digital gold" in the future? We shall see.
What do you think? Is it a wise move for the Biden administration to sell off Bitcoin reserves, or a missed opportunity? Let's discuss your views in the comments!
