Donald Trump promised a Bitcoin Reserve – So why hasn’t the U.S. bought any BTC yet?

18 months have passed since President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve in the U.S. On 6th March, 2025, President Trump directed the federal government to treat Bitcoin [BTC] as a strategic reserve asset.

However, the order did not instruct the government to purchase Bitcoin with taxpayer funds. Instead, it created the reserve primarily by consolidating Bitcoin that the government already owned after it had been forfeited through criminal or civil proceedings.

What went wrong?

These holdings were to be transferred into the reserve and, generally, not sold. As of now, the U.S. government reportedly holds around 328,000 BTC, largely from seizures and forfeitures, while governments globally hold about 435,000 BTC.

The order did, however, leave the door open for the government to acquire additional Bitcoin. It instructed the secretaries of the Treasury and Commerce to develop strategies for obtaining more BTC, but with a major condition.

And that included the administration exploring ways of increasing the reserve without simply appropriating taxpayer money to buy Bitcoin on the open market.

Fake promises or a genuine pro-crypto move?

As reported by the CoinBureau exec, 

The US government didn’t suddenly rush to a crypto exchange and buy BTC by the bucketload. In fact, it bought none whatsoever.

In short, there was a gap between expectations and what the executive order actually promised. Though Trump made a significant pro-Bitcoin policy move by institutionalizing a U.S. Bitcoin reserve, the order did not commit taxpayer money to purchasing Bitcoin.

So, now the real question is whether the administration will ultimately turn the reserve from a pool of seized BTC into an actively growing strategic holding.

Bitcoin’s price action and more

This comes as Bitcoin was trading at $83,145.01 at press time after a drop of 26% in the past year.

Meanwhile, Trump Media recently sold 2,650 BTC worth $205 million after accumulating 11,542 BTC at an average price of $118,522, while its Bitcoin position was down roughly $455 million.

At the same time, the U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve bill, H.R. 8957, or the American Reserve Modernization Act (ARMA) of 2026, was set for consideration by the House Financial Services Committee on the 16th of September.

With the midterm elections approaching, prediction markets put its chances of becoming law in 2026 at just 5–6%, down sharply from 60% in December 2025.

Final Summary

• Back in March 2025, President Trump directed the federal government to treat Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset.
• Though Trump made a significant pro-Bitcoin policy move, the order did not commit taxpayer money to purchasing Bitcoin.