From Seizures to Strategy: Begich Revives Bitcoin Reserve Bill as ARMA

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US Representative Nick Begich has announced plans to rebrand the Bitcoin Act as the American Reserves Modernization Act (ARMA) in the next few weeks.

Speaking at the 2026 Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, the Congressman said the move is intended to draw additional support from lawmakers for a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve similar to that of gold.

Begich seeks to rename the US Bitcoin Act to ARMA

Last year, Begich and Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced the Bitcoin Act, also known as the Boosting Innovation, Technology, and Competitiveness through Optimized Investment and Nationwide Bitcoin Act.

Aside from the naming and political strategy, ARMA differs from the Bitcoin Act in no other way.

Objectives include adding to the national Bitcoin reserve by purchasing 200,000 BTC annually for five years. These coins would be non-disposable for two decades, unless the sale is meant to reduce federal debt.

Additionally, the Act mandates that the government make Bitcoin purchases using the Fed’s discretionary surplus fund or profits accrued from gold accumulation. Previously, much of the nation’s BTC reserves came from criminals’ seized assets or fines paid in cryptocurrency.

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Per the Act, all coins would be stored in secure cold storage facilities across the country to protect them from cyber threats.

Finally, the bill would uphold individuals’ custody of their crypto wallets to keep government interference at bay. This is strikingly different from South Africa’s draft regulations, which permit enforcement officers to compel individuals to hand over the private keys to their crypto assets.

Presently, the soon-to-be ARMA bill is in the Senate Banking Committee, awaiting a markup in May. If passed, the Treasury is estimated to begin its first official purchase of Bitcoin in Q4 2026. Beyond financial dominance, this “digital gold” would also provide an inflationary hedge for the nation.

Currently, the US government holds about 328,372 BTC valued at about $25.4 billion at the current BTC price of $77,357. This makes it the largest sovereign holder of Bitcoin globally, followed by China (about 190,000 BTC) and the UK (about 61,000 BTC).