Catenaa, Wednesday, May 27, 2026- Bipartisan lawmakers in the US House of Representatives introduced legislation Thursday that would lock government-held bitcoin into a national strategic reserve for at least 20 years, marking one of the strongest congressional pushes yet to formalize Bitcoin as a long-term state reserve asset.
The proposed American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026, known as ARMA, was introduced by Republican Representative Nick Begich of Alaska and Democratic Representative Jared Golden of Maine.
The bill would establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve managed by the US Treasury while separating non-bitcoin assets into a broader Digital Asset Stockpile.
Under the proposal, all bitcoin deposited into the reserve would remain locked for a minimum of two decades. The government would be prohibited from selling, auctioning, swapping or otherwise disposing of the holdings during that period.
Reserve Structure
The legislation builds on President Donald Trump’s 2025 executive order establishing a federal bitcoin reserve funded mainly through seized digital assets obtained from criminal and civil forfeitures.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reaffirmed earlier this year that the administration planned to halt bitcoin liquidations and instead accumulate forfeited assets into a national reserve strategy.
Unlike earlier Bitcoin reserve proposals, ARMA does not set a fixed acquisition target such as purchasing 1 million bitcoin.
Instead, the bill directs the Treasury and Commerce departments to study “budget-neutral” acquisition methods that would avoid direct taxpayer funding.
Acquisition Options
Potential reserve expansion methods listed in the proposal include converting existing government-held digital assets, revaluing gold certificates, redirecting tariff revenues, forfeiture proceedings and forming partnerships with US states.
The legislation would also require all federal agencies to report digital asset holdings within 60 days after enactment.
Arkham Intelligence estimates current US government crypto holdings at roughly $26 billion, consisting mainly of bitcoin, ether and stablecoins seized through law enforcement actions.
Oversight Measures
The proposal also introduces quarterly public proof-of-reserve disclosures, independent audits and congressional oversight requirements designed to improve transparency surrounding government-held digital assets.
Supporters argue Bitcoin should increasingly be treated as a strategic reserve commodity similar to gold due to its scarcity, decentralization and growing institutional adoption.
Representative Mike Rulli of Ohio said the US should preserve strategic digital assets rather than continue liquidating them during enforcement proceedings.
Political Divide
The proposal arrives amid widening political divisions over the government’s role in digital assets.
Some lawmakers increasingly support integrating bitcoin into national reserve policy as concerns grow over inflation, sovereign debt expansion and geopolitical competition involving digital currencies.
Critics meanwhile argue extreme price volatility and regulatory uncertainty still make cryptocurrencies unsuitable for sovereign reserve management.
Economists also remain divided over whether bitcoin can realistically evolve into a stable long-term strategic reserve asset comparable to traditional reserves such as gold or foreign currency holdings.
The idea of a US strategic bitcoin reserve gained momentum after several countries began experimenting with state-backed digital asset holdings following the rapid institutional growth of cryptocurrencies during the 2020s. El Salvador became the first nation to adopt bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, while sovereign wealth funds and central banks gradually expanded research into blockchain reserve systems.
In the United States, federal authorities accumulated large crypto holdings through criminal seizures tied to darknet marketplaces, cybercrime operations and sanctions enforcement. For years, the government routinely auctioned seized bitcoin through public sales.
That strategy shifted after bitcoin prices surged and institutional adoption accelerated through spot ETFs, corporate treasury holdings and sovereign interest. President Trump’s 2025 executive order marked the first major US move toward retaining confiscated digital assets instead of liquidating them. Supporters increasingly frame bitcoin reserves as a geopolitical hedge against inflation, debt risks and future monetary competition involving digital currencies and tokenized financial systems.
