MARA CEO Urges US Government to Start Bitcoin Mining to Build Strategic Reserve

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump may fulfill its promises regarding the establishment of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) by commencing the mining of the first cryptocurrency. This was stated by MARA CEO Fred Thiel, as reported by CoinDesk.

«A declaration of an SBR will be meaningless if we do not begin to stock it,» the executive noted.

According to him, this approach aligns with a «budget-neutral» strategy for acquiring coins outlined in Trump’s executive order. Excess hydroelectric energy could be utilized for this purpose.

Currently, the approved document allows for the storage of bitcoins confiscated by the Treasury in criminal and civil cases, while selling cryptocurrency from this reserve is prohibited.

Matthew Siegel, the head of digital asset research at VanEck, has suggested implementing a mining royalty to supplement the SBR. This would generate revenue from companies involved in bitcoin mining rather than from taxpayers.

Under this proposal, energy producers who burn or flare methane could set up mobile facilities for data centers, earning rewards for mined blocks while being exempt from income tax.

In this scenario, mining firms could allocate a portion of their coins to the Treasury’s SBR wallet.

The executive believes this model mitigates greenhouse gas emissions and diversifies bitcoin reserves without incurring federal government expenses.

Siegel urged lawmakers to incorporate these provisions into energy, defense, and appropriations bills, citing federal oil and gas royalties as a precedent linking revenues to extractive activities.

Another suggestion from VanEck involved allocating $100 million from the Exchange Stabilization Fund to enhance the SBR. The expert acknowledged that such a move would likely face opposition from Democrats like Elizabeth Warren.

On May 28, cryptocurrency firm K33, listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market, secured SEK 60 million ($6.2 million) to purchase digital gold as part of its treasury strategy. The company plans to use it for lending purposes as well.

Bin Saqib, special assistant to the Prime Minister of Pakistan on blockchain and cryptocurrencies, announced that Islamabad will establish its own strategic bitcoin reserve, motivated by the creation of the SBR in the U.S.

On March 11, Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced a revised Bitcoin Act in the U.S. Senate, allowing the government to hold over 1 million BTC in a crypto reserve.

The proposal envisages the U.S. buying 200,000 BTC annually over five years, reallocating existing funds from the Fed and the Treasury. The updated legislation permits the accumulation of coins through legitimate means such as confiscation, donations, or transfers from federal agencies.

On May 28, David Sachs, special advisor to Donald Trump on AI and cryptocurrencies, stated that the government would consider purchasing new bitcoins if it found ways to do so without imposing new taxes or increasing the national debt. He emphasized that such a scenario could be feasible by reallocating already designated resources.

It’s worth noting that in January, the CEO of MARA reported that the mining company had started lobbying for the SBR’s launch across all 50 states and at the federal level.

So far, the initiative has gained approval in Texas, New Hampshire, and Arizona. In Oklahoma, Montana, Pennsylvania, North and South Dakota, and Wyoming, efforts to create a strategic bitcoin reserve have also failed.