Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed during his Wednesday congressional testimony that the US government will not provide Bitcoin assistance during times of market decline.
Bessent made his statement after Brad Sherman who has opposed Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies for many years asked him whether the government could execute a Bitcoin “bailout” during times of severe price drops.
Treasury rejects idea of a Bitcoin bailout
During the hearing Sherman asked whether the Treasury Department or any related financial bodies could intervene to support Bitcoin markets. He also pressed Bessent on whether the government could direct private banks to buy Bitcoin by changing reserve requirements.
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Bessent advanced a complete rejection of the concept. He stated that his official capacity as Treasury Secretary and his duties as Financial Stability Oversight Council chair do not permit him to command banks to acquire Bitcoin or any related tokens, including so-called “Trump Coin,” a reference to memecoins linked to Donald Trump.
Bessent stated that he lacks legal power to perform that action while confirming that existing financial systems do not permit such activity.
Bessent explained that US authorities still possess Bitcoin which they acquired through asset seizures. He explained that the government has maintained control of seized Bitcoin worth approximately $500 million, which has increased to over $15 billion due to market price increases.
Bitcoin reserve limited to seized assets and neutral strategies
The testimony comes as part of ongoing debate around the US Bitcoin strategic reserve, which was created through an executive order signed by Trump in March 2025.
The US government can only expand its Bitcoin reserves through two methods which include acquiring Bitcoin from asset forfeiture proceedings and implementing budget-neutral methods. These approaches avoid direct spending and could include converting existing reserve assets, such as oil or precious metals, into Bitcoin.
The government cannot purchase Bitcoin through open market transactions, which some Bitcoin supporters expected would occur.
