The strategic Bitcoin reserve executive order from President Donald Trump raises fresh questions amid plans to buy BTC using “budget neutral strategies.”
In a landmark move for crypto, on Thursday, March 6, President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve and a digital asset stockpile for the U.S. While the order clarifies the planned treatment of Bitcoin and other digital assets, it poses some fresh questions and perhaps some old ones.
One of the fresh ones is what does the Trump administration mean by “budget neutral strategies”?
For context, the executive order instructs the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Commerce to develop “budget neutral strategies” to acquire more Bitcoin for the planned reserve.
The condition appears to be a compromise between opening the door for U.S. government Bitcoin purchases—something Bitcoiners continue to pine for to see price boosts—and ensuring that it comes at no cost to U.S. citizens to reduce chances of resistance.
But what does it mean in practice?
Experts Weigh In
According to one research outlet, the answer could lie in a re-evaluation of another U.S. reserve.
“The ‘budget-neutral strategy’ comment strengthens the possibility that the Treasury pursue revaluation of its gold holdings, especially given Bessent’s recent remark, ‘We are going to monetize the asset side of the balance sheet’,” Presto Research asserted.
What's clear now is that industry thinking has been trapped in binary terms of either stockpile or reserve. In reality, it's both.
The asset forfeitures include multiple crypto assets, not just BTC. BTC will be put under "Reserve," while others under "stockpile." Hence,… https://t.co/8VIfODQ0ph
— Presto Research (@Presto_Research) March 7, 2025
In simpler terms, the U.S. could sell some of its gold to buy Bitcoin. However, this could be a tough sell as it would likely attract significant resistance from gold proponents.
Meanwhile, Muse Labs Researcher Jinze has suggested that mining is not off the table.
“The U.S. government can use existing underutilized computing resources or energy (such as federal data centers) to mine Bitcoin and increase reserves,” he wrote.
The Kingdom of Bhutan has successfully employed this strategy since 2019. Whether the U.S. government can replicate this without significant resistance remains to be seen, as Bitcoin mining remains a polarizing topic in the country.
Another option highlighted by JAN3 CEO Samson Mow and likely hinted at by Strategy Chairman Michael Saylor is bonds. Saylor has used this strategy to accumulate over 2% of the Bitcoin supply at his business intelligence company turned Bitcoin treasury company.
The approach could be a strong contender, considering that Saylor is scheduled to attend the White House crypto summit on Friday, March 7.
Despite the recent executive order, legislative action may still be needed to make the Bitcoin reserve and any budget-neutral acquisition strategies operational.
At the time of writing, the U.S. government controls roughly 200,000 BTC worth nearly $17 billion. It has previously sold about 223,000 BTC for roughly $3 billion, which would have been worth over $19 billion today.
Trump’s crypto czar, David Sacks, lamented these previous sales as a loss to the American taxpayers.
DisClamier: This content is informational and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author's personal opinions and do not reflect The Crypto Basic opinion. Readers are encouraged to do thorough research before making any investment decisions. The Crypto Basic is not responsible for any financial losses.
