The Trump administration has faced serious bureaucratic obstacles in creating a strategic bitcoin reserve (SBR). At the heart of the delay are fierce disagreements between key agencies over control and the legal legitimacy of managing such a volatile asset.

Although a presidential executive order from March 2025 formally assigned the SBR to the Treasury Department, legitimate doubts arose within the government: does the Treasury have sufficient legal authority to manage the "digital gold" reserves given its extreme volatility? As a result, the Commerce Department has emerged as an alternative candidate for the role of reserve manager.

The Justice Department is currently acting as an arbiter, advising both agencies and seeking legally flawless options. The White House, in turn, continues to weigh the optimal structure to realize the ambitious plan of turning the US into the "crypto capital of the world." While officials debate, the country already holds a massive stockpile: according to Bitcoin Treasuries, the US government holds 328,372 BTC, equivalent to approximately $21 billion. This is the largest state cryptocurrency portfolio in the world.

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Source: Bitcoin Treasuries.

Meanwhile, two key bills are gaining momentum in Congress: the BITCOIN Act and the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026 (ARMA). Both documents provide for the acquisition of 1,000,000 BTC over five years, using budget-neutral strategies. Under ARMA, the assets must be frozen for at least 20 years, although theoretically their sale is allowed to reduce the US national debt, which is already approaching $40 trillion.

Despite interagency friction, representatives of the crypto industry remain optimistic. As noted by Bitcoin Treasuries podcast host Tim Kotzman:

"The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve isn't just bullish for Bitcoin. It validates an entirely new category of capital allocation. Public companies moved first. Nation states are beginning to follow."

My analysis: The current disagreements are not just bureaucratic red tape, but a fundamental test of institutional maturity. If the US cannot find a legally clean and operationally efficient model for managing the SBR, it will send a negative signal to other states eyeing bitcoin. However, the very fact that the dispute is about who will manage the reserve, rather than whether it is needed, is already a historic breakthrough.