At the Bitcoin BTC/USD 2025 Conference, a panel of experts outlined how the U.S. could build and fund a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, echoing moves traditionally made in gold, oil and other critical resources.

What Happened: Matthew Pines of the Bitcoin Policy Institute explained that a recent executive order by President Trump directed the Commerce and Treasury departments to identify "budget-neutral" ways to acquire more Bitcoin, without additional cost to taxpayers.

The order also prevents the sale of any currently held Bitcoin, while authorizing the consolidation of other digital assets under federal control.

Pines emphasized that the U.S. already controls a substantial Bitcoin holding between 30% and 40% of the total circulating supply, far surpassing its share of above-ground gold, which sits around 8% to 10%.

This, he said, gives the U.S. a 3x-to-4x asymmetric advantage over geopolitical rivals like China.

VanEck's Matthew Sigel backed the idea of a Bitcoin reserve by pointing out America's long-standing history of stockpiling scarce strategic assets from gold, silver, and oil to more niche stores like rare earths, helium, and even cheese.

He highlighted that at least nine countries now mine Bitcoin with government backing, including Pakistan, making it strategically sound for the U.S. to lead rather than lag in this space.

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Why It Matters: The panel laid out three possible pathways to fund a U.S. Bitcoin reserve:

• Symbolic Acquisitions: Funded by "couch cushion money" from existing seized crypto assets, this path would reinforce commitment without large capital outlays.
• Material Acquisitions: Funded through small allocations from sources like tariff revenues or profits from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac privatization, estimated to generate hundreds of millions to a few billion dollars.
• Strategic Acquisitions: The most ambitious path. Pines argued that the U.S. would need an additional 200,000–400,000 Bitcoin to claim the status of sovereign Bitcoin superpower, on top of the roughly 100,000 BTC it already controls with clear title.

Two funding mechanisms could support such a move –  Exchange Stabilization Fund (ESF) and Gold Certificate Revaluation. With $39 billion in unencumbered capital, the ESF grants the Treasury Secretary the power to deal in gold, foreign exchange, and other securities, which could be structured to include Bitcoin.

Fred Thiel of Marathon Digital noted that the U.S. still values its gold reserves at just $35/oz, despite current market prices well above $2,000/oz.

Revaluing this could unlock over $800 billion into the Treasury General Account, potentially funding large-scale digital asset acquisitions.

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