Bitcoin glides as the US excludes buying for Strategic Reserve, originally appeared on TheStreet.
Bitcoin prices fell sharply on August 14, after the American Minister of Finance Scott Bessent said that the government has no plans to buy extra Bitcoin for its planned strategic reserve, instead to rely on confiscated companies.
On the morning with Maria, Berr's comments answered in response to questions about American gold reserves and whether the government would consider similar movements with Bitcoin.
“I doubt that we will revise it, but we will keep it there as a store for the American people,” Bessent said when he was asked if the treasury was planning to revise gold.
He added that the US started recording Bitcoin in its strategic reserves, but with a clear reservation. “We also started with the 21st century, a Bitcoin strategic reserve. We are not going to buy that, but we are going to use confiscated assets and continue to build it up. We are going to stop selling,” he said.
The comments recently dampen optimism in crypto investors who had speculated that the US could enter the market as a buyer, which may result in a considerable demand. Instead, Bessert's clarification indicates that any growth in the reserve will arise from confiscated digital assets – often the result of actions of law enforcement against illegal activities – instead of open market purchases.
The decision contrasts with the approach to some other countries, such as El Salvador, that Bitcoin has regularly purchased as part of his national strategy. Analysts say that the American relocation can limit the institutional purchasing pressure in the short term, but can still tighten the supply if the government has seized coins permanently.
After Bessent's interview, Bitcoin slid from more than $ 118,000 to nearly $ 117,000, with wider cryptom markets also lower.
The cryptomarkt tumbled when more than $ 1.05 billion in lifting tree positions was wiped out in 24 hours, with lungs that lost $ 778 million, per Coinglass. Bybit saw the biggest hit at $ 447 million in liquidations, including a BTC-USD position of $ 10 million.
Bitcoin glides as the US first appeared for Strategic Reserve on the Testreet on August 14, 2025
This story was originally reported by Thestreet on August 14, 2025, where it first appeared.
