Washington D.C. — The creation of a formal U.S. government Bitcoin reserve is facing significant regulatory headwinds, according to remarks delivered today by Amelia Vance, Director of the White House Crypto Council. Vance explicitly blamed “a labyrinth of obscure and antiquated laws” for the delay, suggesting current legislation is ill-equipped to handle decentralized digital assets.
Speaking at the Brookings Institute’s annual Financial Policy Summit, Vance highlighted that the primary obstacles are not due to technological complexity but rather jurisdictional conflicts and outdated interpretations of existing statutes, particularly those governing commodity classification and government asset custody. “We are operating under legal frameworks designed for the early 20th century financial system,” Vance stated. “Attempts to integrate a major digital asset like Bitcoin into a sovereign reserve mandate immediately collide with overlapping authorities at the SEC, CFTC, and Treasury, each governed by different legal definitions of value.”
The Director pointed specifically to the challenge of applying the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) standards to government-held wallets and the lack of clarity regarding how Bitcoin should be treated under the Presidential Memorandum on Government Asset Management. She indicated that counsel reviews have repeatedly stalled progress, citing concerns over potential non-compliance with rules governing physical security and internal control requirements that lack digital equivalents. This legal stagnation, she argued, puts the U.S. at a disadvantage against nations that have already begun integrating digital currencies into their sovereign wealth strategies.
Vance concluded her address by urging Congressional action. She stressed that while the Administration remains committed to exploring a strategic digital reserve, a legislative overhaul or specific regulatory carve-out is necessary to move the initiative forward without violating existing statutes intended for traditional monetary assets.
Source: ‘Obscure’ laws stall Bitcoin reserve: White House Crypto Council director
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