A former White House advisor said Trump still intends to increase his holdings of strategic reserve Bitcoin, but faces legal obstacles.
BIBIBI
AT A GLANCE
Former White House crypto adviser Witt said that Trump still intends to purchase Bitcoin for the strategic reserve, but open-market purchases face legal hurdles.
Article
Former White House Advisor: Trump Still Intends to Add Bitcoin to the U.S. Strategic Reserve but Faces Legal Issues
PANews November 11 reports, according to Bitcoin.com, that former White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt stated U.S. President Donald Trump still intends to purchase Bitcoin for the country's strategic Bitcoin reserve, but open-market purchases face legal challenges. Witt said that because Congress controls federal spending, direct open-market purchases are "legally questionable," and Congress has included provisions in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) prohibiting such purchases. The U.S. government established a strategic Bitcoin reserve via executive order in March 2025, with initial assets primarily coming from previously confiscated government Bitcoin, and tasked the Treasury and Commerce Departments with exploring budget-neutral ways to acquire more BTC, though no specific plan has been announced yet, nor have open-market purchase plans been declared. Witt also noted that if an independent bill were needed to make the strategic Bitcoin reserve permanent, given the divided Congress, it would...
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Key points
01
PANews cited Bitcoin.com on November 11, reporting that former White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt said Donald Trump still intends to purchase Bitcoin for the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
02
Witt stated that Congress controls federal spending, the legality of direct open market purchases is questionable, and that the NDAA has included provisions prohibiting such purchases.
03
The report notes that in March 2025, the U.S. government established a strategic Bitcoin reserve through an executive order, with initial assets primarily derived from previously confiscated Bitcoins.
04
The report notes that the Treasury and Commerce Departments have been asked to explore budget-neutral ways to acquire more BTC, but no specific plan has been announced, nor has a public market purchase program been declared.
AI-assisted interpretation
The following is analysis, separate from reported facts. Verify important claims independently.
This report needs to distinguish between “intention to purchase” and “announced purchase plan”: the former is Witt’s claim, and the original text explicitly states that no specific plan has yet been disclosed, nor has a public market purchase plan been announced. The initial assets in the existing reserves mainly come from confiscations and do not mean that the government has already bought them on the market.
Why it matters to readers
The news concerns how the U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve is increasing its holdings and the legal restrictions facing open-market purchases; at present, purchase intentions cannot be regarded as confirmed new acquisitions.
Do not interpret the advisory report’s stated intent to purchase as an official government announcement, nor mistake the seizure of reserve assets for open-market purchases.
Risks and unknowns
The news was relayed by PANews from Bitcoin.com; the purchase intention comes from Witt’s statement, and the original text did not provide any latest direct confirmation from Trump or the government.
The claim that the NDAA prohibits such purchases is not accompanied by specific provisions, making it impossible to verify the scope of the restriction based on this.
The specific plan for acquiring more BTC in a budget-neutral manner has not yet been announced, and the original text does not provide any records of new purchases.
The original text’s statement about enshrining the reserve in law through a standalone bill was truncated, making it impossible to confirm the full viewpoint.
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Related concepts
Strategic Bitcoin Reserve
This term is not in the glossary yet. Browse related concepts in the glossary.
