On July 9, 2023, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish the "Strategic Bitcoin Reserve" and "Digital Asset Stockpile" [1]. This reserve aims to hold Bitcoin seized from criminal and civil cases as a reserve asset, without selling it, similar to the way gold is held in Fort Knox [2].

The U.S. government estimates it holds about 200,000 Bitcoins, valued at approximately $17 billion [3]. The stockpile also includes other digital assets such as Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, and XRP [4].

Trump is promoting this step as part of his efforts to make America the "capital of digital currencies" [1]. However, the plan has faced criticism from economists who believe that relying on volatile assets like Bitcoin to pay off national debt could be risky [5].