Former White House crypto council executive director Patrick Witt said President Trump is interested in having the US government acquire Bitcoin. In an interview with the What Bitcoin Did podcast, Witt said officials had discussed ways to do so, but questioned whether buying directly on the open market would be legal without congressional authorization.
Witt said the administration’s preferred approach was to put a strategic Bitcoin reserve into law. He also said passing a standalone bill would be difficult in a divided Congress. None of the purchase routes he described was presented as an approved plan.
According to Witt, options discussed at the Treasury included revaluing gold reserves, using the Exchange Stabilization Fund, converting other assets on the government’s balance sheet into Bitcoin, and accepting Bitcoin for taxes and fees. He said each would need further legal analysis and that any move would ultimately depend on whether Treasury Secretary Bessent chose to pursue it.
Witt also said an initial audit of Bitcoin held by government agencies produced uneven results and that a second review was underway to improve the figures. A decision on whether to publish the holdings had not been made. He criticized past custody practices, describing cold wallets kept in drawers and saying a contractor’s son had stolen Bitcoin held by the US Marshals Service. Those custody accounts are Witt’s claims as reported in the interview. He said Treasury was building a custody system that might combine self-custody and third-party custody.
Witt added that, to his knowledge, no one would succeed him as crypto council executive director; he expected offices including White House Legislative Affairs and the White House Counsel’s Office to share the duties.
Jinse reported these remarks on November 11, 2026, at 17:55 China time. Its notice said the interview was recorded before the US midterm elections and the video was posted on November 10. The remarks describe discussions and possible routes—not a confirmed government Bitcoin purchase.