Hey all, Liam here. 

Industry enthusiasts’ hopes that the US government would become a Bitcoin-buying machine appear to be dying a slow, semantic death. 

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent issued the one-two punch late last week. 

First, the South Carolina native went on Fox Business on Thursday and said the country wouldn’t be buying any Bitcoin. Later that day, Bessent took to X to add that the Treasury is “committed to exploring budget-neutral pathways to acquire” more coin.  

The term “budget neutral” means funding programmes and ventures without needing to ask Congress to appropriate public money to pay for them. 

It’s also being seen as a clear political hedge by the administration. 

The fact that Bessent shared this additional note on X after his interview resulted in ridicule from industry pundits.

“Blink twice if you’re under duress, sir,” said Nic Carter, a general partner at crypto venture firm Castle Island Ventures. 

Meanwhile, Bo Hines, the White House’s crypto advisor and perhaps the administration’s most vocal advocate for expanding the government’s Bitcoin stash, stepped down earlier this month. 

Over the last year, Hines has called to evaluate using the government’s gold reserves to buy up Bitcoin and turning new tariff revenues towards purchases. 

But when looking back over the timeline, did Trump ever actually commit to buying Bitcoin?

No, not really. 

The administration’s first sweeping executive order for the industry in January mentions the study of a Bitcoin reserve.

It also indicated that any stockpile the government amassed would be from coin seized or forfeited via law enforcement efforts rather than an outright buying spree and shouldn’t “impose incremental costs on United States taxpayers.”

The TLDR? No promise to buy Bitcoin.

Likewise, in March, Trump pledged not to sell any seized Bitcoin — but little more than that. 

Indeed, there seems to have been very little public comment that the US government would ever become a de facto buyer of Bitcoin. Just hints, suggestions, and comparisons to Fort Knox. 

Promises made, promises kept. Right?

ICYMI

• New York’s top lawyer said Ethereum is a security. A crypto lawyer is coming for her job

  Khurram Dara, a 36-year-old attorney and Buffalo native, recently left his position as the regulatory lead at Bain Capital Crypto to crisscross New York and court local chapters of the state’s Republican Party.

• Crypto exchanges should block users from cashing out tokens with low ‘compliance scores,’ BIS researchers say
  Researchers at the Bank for International Settlements proposed a solution to a problem that has long bedevilled the crypto industry: how to enforce money laundering regulations on permissionless blockchains.

• Thailand pitches crypto-to-baht QR payments sandbox to revive slowing tourism
  Crypto users might be tempted to cash in on near-peak prices in the Land of Smiles as early as this month, as regulators plot out a new payments sandbox.

Story of the Week

The US ‘won’t buy’ more Bitcoin, says Treasury Secretary

Bitcoin advocates were quick to rail against Bessent’s statement, accusing Washington of breaking its promise to build a sovereign Bitcoin stack.

US President Donald Trump’s campaign had floated the idea of a reserve as part of his “crypto capital of the world” pledge, which many took to mean purchasing Bitcoin.

Post of the Week

US President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing bank regulators to rescind guidance that could lead to “politicised or unlawful debanking.”

Crypto businesses, and even some prominent conservatives — including the president himself — have alleged they were denied or lost access to bank accounts at the behest of politically-motivated, Biden-era regulators.

DL News is an independent news organisation that provides original, in-depth reporting on the largely misunderstood world of cryptocurrency and decentralised finance. From original stories to investigations, our journalism is accurate, honest and responsible.

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