The US Treasury Department has officially incorporated Bitcoin seizure into the national strategic reserve.

BlockBeats News Update, January 21: During the Davos World Economic Forum on January 20, 2026, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Benett announced that the U.S. government will cease the auction of confiscated digital assets and transfer all currently held Bitcoin by the Department of Justice and the Treasury into the "U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve."

Under this policy, Bitcoin primarily obtained through criminal and civil asset forfeitures will be permanently held, no longer subject to regular auctions by the U.S. Marshals Service. Benett stated that this move aims to "halt the outflow of sovereign digital wealth" and considers the 200,000+ Bitcoin currently held by the U.S. as a long-term strategic reserve on the national balance sheet to hedge against traditional currency volatility.

Benett also emphasized that the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will achieve "budget-neutral" expansion through law enforcement seizures, without the use of taxpayer funds for open market purchases. The assets will be custody by the Federal Reserve and may not be sold or transferred unless under extreme national economic emergency.

Analysts believe that this decision signifies the U.S. elevating Bitcoin to a strategic asset status close to gold for the first time at the policy level, potentially weakening the long-standing "government dumping" and setting a precedent for digital asset policies among major global economies.