Bessent Leaves Door Open for U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Purchases After Mixed Messages

Speaking early in the day, Bessent told reporters the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) would remain limited to the $15–$20 billion worth of bitcoin already held — largely from law enforcement seizures — and that no additional buying was planned.

By late afternoon, however, the secretary appeared to reverse course. In a post on X, Bessent said the Treasury is “committed to exploring budget-neutral pathways to acquire more Bitcoin to expand the reserve.” He emphasized that while seized assets would remain the “foundation” of the SBR, the government is open to finding cost-offsetting mechanisms to add to its holdings.

Treasury is committed to exploring budget-neutral pathways to acquire more Bitcoin to expand the reserve, Source: X

The SBR was created in March under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump, part of an initiative Bessent has championed as a way to strengthen U.S. financial resilience and diversify strategic assets. The program recently lost a key architect, Bo Hines, head of the White House’s Council of Advisors on Digital Assets, who departed earlier this month.

Bitcoin prices, meanwhile, were sharply lower despite the late-day policy shift. After touching an all-time high of $124,000 overnight, BTC slid to about $118,000 by Thursday’s close — a drop exacerbated by stronger-than-expected U.S. Producer Price Index data, which dampened expectations for a September interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

Bitcoin slid to just under $118,000, source: Bitcoin Liquid Index

The market’s muted reaction to Bessent’s updated comments suggests traders remain focused on macroeconomic conditions rather than potential government Bitcoin accumulation. Still, his late-day statement leaves open the possibility that the U.S. could emerge as an active buyer in the world’s largest cryptocurrency, should budget-neutral mechanisms prove viable.