U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Responds to the Question of Whether the U.S. Will Bail Out Falling Bitcoin

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reiterated the U.S. commitment to a strong dollar policy in his remarks before the House of Representatives.

“The Treasury Does Not Have the Authority to Buy Bitcoin”

Bessent also responded to the question of whether the US government could implement a bailout plan for falling BTC by clearly stating that the Treasury does not have the authority to buy Bitcoin with taxpayers’ money. Topics such as monetary policy independence, cryptocurrency regulation, and the housing market were highlighted in the session, which at times saw heated debates.

Bessent, stating, “We have always supported a strong dollar policy,” affirmed support for the dollar’s status as a global reserve currency. Following this statement, no significant change was observed in the dollar index. He also stated that he supports the independence of the Fed, but added that “accountability” is also important. When asked whether he would draw a clear line against a chairman dismissing a Fed official due to policy disagreements, he stated that he is not a lawyer and that the administration should await a decision from the United States Supreme Court on such matters.

The opening of the session was quite tense. Maxine Waters, the most senior Democrat on the committee, told Bessent to “shut up” at one point. New York Democrat Gregory Meeks accused Bessent of acting like a “lackey” of President Donald Trump. Bessent, however, defended the Trump administration’s pro-growth policies based on its vision of “parallel prosperity where Wall Street and Main Street grow together.” He characterized some past regulatory actions as “reflexive regulation rather than crisis prevention.”

A noteworthy dialogue took place under the heading of cryptocurrency. Referring to the views of some Republican members that the US should sell a portion of its gold reserves to buy Bitcoin, the question was raised whether the Treasury had the capacity to “rescue Bitcoin.” Bessent explicitly stated that the Treasury did not have the authority to purchase Bitcoin with tax revenues. However, he criticized the cryptocurrency policy under the Biden administration, describing it as “destruction.”

*This is not investment advice.