As speculation surrounding President Donald Trump’s recent statement about creating a U.S. cryptocurrency strategic reserve has reached a fever pitch, White House AI and Crypto Czar David Sacks spoke out.
Sacks attempted to reduce expectation and overinterpretation by noting that mentioning these particular altcoins did not mean any government-endorsed option or preference.
Many cryptocurrency executives criticized the specific digital assets included in the report as too far-flung from crypto standards of development, institutional adoption, and decentralization seen in Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Some analysts suggested that their addition was a sign the government had changed its approach and was preparing to back other blockchain networks. However, Sacks shot down those theories in an interview on Friday.
“The president just listed the top five cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, so I think this is one of those moments where people are reading too much into this,” Sacks said. “There’s no secret motive behind it — he just mentioned the biggest names.”
The market’s response to Trump’s comment was nonetheless stark. The name drop of XRP, SOL, and ADA resulted in explosive price movements, with some of these assets ripping up close to 70% over the weekend before pulling back.
Such price volatility highlighted the outsized impact political statements and policy signals can have on digital asset markets.
Federal government can’t account for all its crypto holdings
Sacks said a complete audit was still needed to establish the government’s crypto holdings. He had no doubts that the U.S. government owned Bitcoin and thought there was some Ethereum. However, he noted that there was no clear answer to whether it also held other altcoins such as XRP, Solana, or Cardano.
That uncertainty is part of what Thursday night’s executive order required: a full tally of all the digital assets the U.S. government currently holds. The United States federal government has over 198,000 BTC holdings, and Bitcoin Treasuries estimate this to be worth around $17 billion at today’s prices.
The order also establishes a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile to manage non-Bitcoin digital assets acquired through criminal and civil seizures. However, it explicitly states that the government will not actively purchase additional cryptocurrencies for this stockpile beyond those obtained through legal recoveries.
Federal government is not interested in selling its crypto holdings
The executive order sets forth a new way of dealing with these digital assets rather than simply playing accountants. While the federal government may opt to sell some of its holdings, Sacks suggested other strategies, such as lending or staking the cryptocurrencies it owns and earning additional returns, could be used.
Sacks said the executive order was meant to establish guidelines for responsible asset management. He said that the first step would be a complete audit and that digital assets would be transferred to a more secure account. The Treasury Secretary and their expertise would then administer a diversified portfolio to long-term custodial oversight to maximize the benefit for Americans.
He also said the strategy may be as simple as staking certain assets for passive rewards, portfolio rebalancing to lower risk while gaining a larger return, or selling when appropriate. He said the Treasury Department could consider such options if they served the country’s long-term financial interests.
With these policy developments playing out, the crypto industry’s eyes are now fixed on a highly publicized summit in Washington, D.C., where President Trump hosts several top Bitcoin and cryptocurrency executives. The discussions are likely to focus on regulatory approaches, market growth, and how blockchain technology is evolving in the U.S. economy.
In the meantime, the market conditions are still turbulent. XRP and ADA have lost around 7% in the last 24 hours following their brief rally last weekend (according to The Block’s crypto price data).
Solana (SOL), on the other hand, remained relatively more robust, recording a slight decline of 1.3%.
The two leading cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum, have also suffered; Bitcoin has fallen 2%, while Ethereum has lost 2.7% during the same time frame.
As the government’s crypto blueprint continues, traders, investors, and policymakers will watch how these assets are handled in the new U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile and whether other regulatory changes could affect the broader market.