U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday afternoon charging the Treasury and Commerce Departments with creating a sovereign wealth fund.
While Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has expressed at least cautious interest in crypto, Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick has been a loud champion for the sector. His bond trading powerhouse Cantor Fitzgerald is the custodian for stablecoin giant Tether’s massive holdings of government paper, and Lutnick himself has talked about his own personal massive exposure to bitcoin (BTC).
Appearing alongside Trump in the Oval Office Monday, Bessent said he expected the sovereign wealth fund to be created in the next 12 months. While bitcoin reportedly was not mentioned at the signing, a sovereign wealth fund could potentially be a vehicle through which the government might buy and hold the crypto.
Bitcoin rose modestly to $99,600 in wake of the executive order news.