Former White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt said President Donald Trump remains interested in buying bitcoin for the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. Speaking on the What Bitcoin Did podcast, Witt said there had been considerable discussion of the idea, but that open-market purchases face serious legal questions, according to ChainCatcher’s November 11, 2026 report, which cited Bitcoin.com News.
A March 2025 executive order established the reserve using bitcoin already seized by the government. It also directed the Treasury and Commerce departments to look for “budget-neutral” ways to acquire more. No such strategy had been made public, and no open-market purchase had been announced as of the report.
Witt said direct purchases are legally questionable because Congress controls federal spending. He also said concerns about purchases had led Congress to include language prohibiting them in the National Defense Authorization Act, and that he was working to obtain permission and authorization. Those are Witt’s account of the legislative obstacle—not an announcement that a purchase has been approved.
Making the reserve permanent would be harder still, Witt said: a standalone bill would face a divided Congress. Without legislation, the reserve remains dependent on an executive order that a future president could revoke.
Original report: ChainCatcher, November 11, 2026, 17:38 UTC+8.