Update (Feb. 4 at 2:20 pm UTC): This article has been updated to reflect that Howard Lutnick has been nominated to serve as US Secretary of Commerce, but he has not been confirmed by the Senate.
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that instructs the government to establish a sovereign wealth fund, leading some industry advocates and at least one lawmaker to suggest that this could result in the government acquiring Bitcoin.
The executive order was signed by Trump during a press event in the Oval Office on February 3. It directs Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and his nominee for Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, to initiate a process that aims to create an American sovereign wealth fund. Bessent stated that the executive order will be implemented within the next 12 months and will monetize the asset side of the US balance sheet.
Although Trump, Bessent, and Lutnick did not explicitly mention whether the fund, if established, would invest in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, they hinted at the possibility of the government purchasing TikTok. The video-sharing app is currently subject to a law that requires its parent company, ByteDance, to divest its US business or face a potential ban.
Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis took to X after the signing of the executive order to suggest that the sovereign wealth fund could be utilized to buy Bitcoin. Bitcoin advocate Wayne Vaughan, who has also called on the US government to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve, stated that both Bessent and Lutnick “like Bitcoin” and could establish the wealth fund to invest in crypto.
However, not everyone is in agreement with Trump’s executive orders. Since taking office on January 20, Trump has signed several executive orders that have been immediately challenged through lawsuits by organizations and authorities questioning the president’s authority to enact laws through executive actions. For instance, a federal judge blocked an executive order attempting to revoke birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, deeming it “blatantly unconstitutional.”
Among Trump’s campaign promises to the crypto industry were pardoning Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, establishing a Bitcoin stockpile, ensuring all BTC mined in the United States, and halting the development of a potential US central bank digital currency (CBDC). On January 23, he signed a separate executive order establishing a crypto working group and prohibiting a CBDC, but it remains uncertain whether this order could also face legal challenges.
Over the weekend, Bitcoin’s price dropped below $100,000 following news that Trump planned to impose tariffs on imports from Canada, China, and Mexico. However, after the coverage of the sovereign wealth fund executive order, the price had risen above $101,000 at the time of publication.