The Roswell Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

By Guy Malone, a certified bitcoin professional. The views expressed in this column are those of the author.

In direct response to reading my “World War Bitcoin” column (Roswell Daily Record Dec. 29, 2024), non-New Mexican reader and avid social media poster, #Goodtobeme, on Jan. 3 sent the equivalent of $3,000 over the bitcoin blockchain (no bank involved), as a gift to establish the — the what?The story so far …

S.4912 - BITCOIN Act of 2024: “A bill to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and other programs to ensure the transparent management of Bitcoin holdings of the Federal Government.” Jul 31, 2024

Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) is sponsor of the act. Lummis was also the first sitting U.S. senator to disclose personal bitcoin holdings, according to the Wall Street Journal, CNBC and others in 2021. On Jan. 8 Lummis reposted an “ABC News Live” interview, where she said then, “I’m a former state treasurer, and I invested our state’s permanent funds. So I was always looking for a good store of value (emphasis hers) and bitcoin fits that bill.”

Tomorrow, President-elect Donald Trump drops the “-elect” and very likely executes one, maybe both, of his major campaign promises to bitcoiners (a voting bloc discovered in 2021 to be larger than AARP; see my Oct. 17, 2024, RDR column).

One promise was that he would free our political prisoner, Ross Ulbricht, currently serving a life sentence for making an “eBay-style” website enabling bitcoin purchases and even seller reviews. Illegal transactions were indeed made by others, but Ulbricht himself was jailed to warn of the lengths the U.S. would go to, to stamp out bitcoin adoption.

How the tables have turned: In her Jan. 3 Forbes column, “Nation States Turn To Bitcoin As A Strategic Reserve Asset,” Susie Violet Pinkerton, bitcoin journalist and CEO of Bitcoin Policy UK, concludes

“For governments hesitating, the message is clear: adapt or risk being left behind in a world where bitcoin sets the rules. … Nation-states now see bitcoin as a way to enhance sovereignty, hedge against inflation, and signal progress. …”

Of the United States’ end-of-year semi-trustworthy “signaling of progress,” just over 200,000 total bitcoin are reportedly held by the U.S. government, and “close to 144,000” (Forbes, 2013) of them and maybe more — in fact, maybe all 200,000 of “our” bitcoin — came from at least three separate seizures related to the shutting down of the “Silk Road” website. Figures vary because some of these bitcoin have been prematurely sold by government factions; many others may still be legally deemed others' property (S.4912: “... to ensure the transparent management of Bitcoin holdings of the Federal Government”). 

But the point is — literally because of Ulbricht’s checkered past — as of December 2024, the U.S. was claiming to hold more bitcoin than any other nation (has publicly disclosed).

"Never sell your bitcoin!" -DJT

Trump’s second promise, campaigning at Nashville’s July 2024 Bitcoin Conference, stated to thunderous applause that “If I am elected, it will be the policy of my administration, United States of America, to keep 100% of all the bitcoin the U.S. government currently holds or acquires … This will serve in effect as the core of the national strategic bitcoin stockpile …”

Trump has also expressed unflinching support of the bitcoin mining industry, posting on Truth Social in June 2024 that he wants "all the remaining Bitcoin to be made in the USA."

In hindsight, history may have no choice but to label Ulbricht as America’s greatest 21st century hero, for literally saving our economy — or, as Trump and Lummis have both suggested, to one day use his bitcoin to start the reserve which will eliminate our national debt.

“And now, adding colour …”

“World War Bitcoin” detailed that not just the U.S., but also Russia and China are amassing bitcoin. But arguably holding the largest undisclosed bitcoin stockpile under the sun is the United Arab Emirates. The UAE is highly rumored from the top down of the bitcoin industry to own 3-400,000 bitcoin, keeping this a state secret until Trump’s proposed stockpile is signed into law, by him.

Because of true “arms race” urgency, Trump is also highly speculated to be establishing the bitcoin stockpile by executive order on Week 1, if not Day 1, along with Ulbricht’s release. It might take 9