15.08.2025 17:05

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent initially tempered enthusiasm within the Bitcoin community on Thursday. He stated that the planned Strategic Bitcoin Reserve would utilize the existing government holdings, estimated at $15 billion to $20 billion, with no immediate plans for further acquisitions. This announcement initially disappointed many who had anticipated significant new purchases.

However, a subsequent statement from Bessent appeared to directly contradict his earlier remarks. Later in the day, he affirmed the Treasury's commitment to investigating budget-neutral strategies for acquiring additional Bitcoin to bolster the reserve. These future purchases, he clarified, would supplement the Bitcoin already confiscated and forfeited to the government, which forms the core of the proposed reserve.

The creation of this strategic Bitcoin reserve is rooted in a March executive order signed by President Trump, an initiative actively championed by Bessent himself. The departure of Bo Hines, the head of the White House’s Council of Advisors on Digital Assets, earlier in the month, added a layer of uncertainty to the process, given the council's involvement in the reserve's development.

Bitcoin's price experienced significant volatility on Thursday. After reaching a record high of $124,000, it dropped considerably to around $118,000 in late afternoon trading. This sharp downturn followed a surprisingly robust Producer Price Index report, raising concerns about inflation and potentially delaying anticipated interest rate reductions by the Federal Reserve in September, thus impacting the cryptocurrency's value. The conflicting statements from the Treasury Secretary, coupled with broader macroeconomic factors, contributed to the day's market fluctuations.