‘We want as much Bitcoin as we can get’

Bo Hines, executive director of Trump’s presidential council on digital assets, echoed the White House’s stand on a Bitcoin reserve and possible purchases.

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed two Executive Orders to create a digital asset regulatory framework and establish the nation’s first Bitcoin (BTC) reserve since taking office on Jan. 20, hoping to fulfill campaign promises pledged to the crypto voting block.

The latter, issued on March 6, authorized an audit of America’s current BTC holdings, which are estimated to be around 200,000 tokens. It also mentioned leveraging “budget neutral” strategies to possibly buy more Bitcoin, quelling fears of further strain on the national deficit.

Hines reiterated this plan on March 18 at an event in New York organized by Blockworks. Speaking on BTC plans at the White House, Hines said its important to the U.S. to “have, retain, and build on” its digital gold reserves. BTC is often referred to as digital gold due to the store of value trait.

Also, Hines reaffirmed that Trump’s administration was actively assessing how to acquire more BTC. “I get asked all the time how much (BTC) you want. Well, that’s like asking a country how much gold do you want? As much as we can get.” Hines said on stage.

The U.S. is the world’s largest nation-state BTC holder by a few thousand tokens. However, its position at the top of the pile may change due to a filing from the Department of Justice.

Criminal seizures from cases like Silk Road and Bitfinex comprise all of America’s Bitcoin portfolio. In the case of Bitfinex, the DOJ suggested returning about 95,000 BTC stolen from the crypto exchange in 2026. Should a judge grant this motion, the U.S. would fall behind China in BTC wealth and become only the second-biggest sovereign BTC holder.