United States government holds $12B in Bitcoin — Arkham Intelligence

Pro-crypto Senator Cynthia Lummis recently announced legislation establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve for the United States.

The United States government still holds more than 183,000 Bitcoin, valued at roughly $12 billion, at the time of writing, making it the largest geopolitical owner of the decentralized currency.

According to data from Arkham Intelligence, the United States government is also holding 50,000 Ether (ETH), 121 million in Tether (USDT), 40,000 Binance tokens (BNB), and over 10 million of Circle’s dollar-pegged stablecoin USD Coin (USDC).

The most recent transaction from US government-controlled wallets occurred on July 29 for nearly 28,000 Bitcoin (BTC), though the identity controlling the receiving wallet is unknown at this time.

Related: US national debt passes $35T — 5 Things to know in Bitcoin this week

Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset of the United States

On July 27, the final day of the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville, Tennessee, Senator Cynthia Lummis announced the introduction of legislation to make Bitcoin a strategic reserve asset of the United States.

The Wyoming lawmaker proposed a plan to purchase 5% of Bitcoin’s total supply and hold the digital commodity as a Treasury asset. Lummis called the proposal a 21st-century “Louisiana Purchase,” a reference to the purchase of the American Midwest from the French for $15 million in 1803.

Former President Donald Trump has also hinted at creating a Bitcoin strategic reserve. During his keynote address at the Bitcoin 2024 conference, the Republican presidential candidate promised not to sell any of the US government’s Bitcoin holdings. Trump stated that he wants the Bitcoin industry to flourish in the US and doesn’t want to undermine blockchain innovation through overregulation.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. likewise promised to sign an executive order transferring the US government’s vast Bitcoin holdings to the Treasury and purchasing 500 Bitcoin per day until the United States owned 4 million Bitcoin. 

Not everyone believes the strategic reserve is imminent

Ari Paul, chief information officer at BlockTower Capital, believes that the odds are stacked against Bitcoin becoming a strategic reserve asset of the United States. By 2028, the chances of this happening are 10:1, he said. 

The executive explained that an informal announcement by presidential candidates not to sell the United States Bitcoin holdings is not enough to establish an official Bitcoin strategic reserve fund.