#USHouseAdvancesBitcoinReserveBill

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee has advanced legislation that would put a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve into federal law, marking an important development in the ongoing debate over the role of Bitcoin in U.S. financial policy.

The bill, known as the American Reserve Modernization Act, H.R. 8957, was approved by the committee on a 28-21 vote on September 16, 2026. It would establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve under the Treasury Department, alongside a separate Digital Asset Stockpile for other digital assets.

Under the proposal, federally held Bitcoin would be consolidated under Treasury custody. Bitcoin placed into the reserve would generally face a minimum 20-year holding period, while the legislation also includes requirements for reporting, security, and verification of government-held digital assets.

An important distinction is that advancing the bill does not mean the U.S. government has been authorized to immediately purchase a predetermined amount of Bitcoin. The legislation focuses heavily on existing government-held Bitcoin and would require the Treasury and Commerce departments to study budget-neutral approaches for acquiring additional BTC.

The proposal also separates Bitcoin from other digital assets. Bitcoin would receive dedicated reserve treatment, while non-Bitcoin assets held by the federal government would be placed into a separate Digital Asset Stockpile with different management rules.

This development comes shortly after the U.S. Senate failed to advance the broader CLARITY Act on September 15, meaning different parts of the U.S. crypto policy agenda are now moving through Congress on separate legislative tracks.

For the crypto market, the significance of the House committee vote goes beyond the immediate headlines. A statutory reserve framework could create a clearer legal structure around government-held Bitcoin and establish rules that could remain in place beyond a single administration.

However, the bill is not yet law. It still needs consideration by the full House and would then need to pass the Senate before it could reach the president for signature. No full House floor vote date had been set in the latest reports.

For traders and investors, the key areas to watch are the next House steps, Senate support, changes to the bill's language, and how policymakers address government custody, acquisition methods, transparency, and the treatment of other digital assets.

The latest development shows that Bitcoin policy remains an active topic in Washington, even as broader cryptocurrency legislation faces its own challenges.

The market will be watching closely as the American Reserve Modernization Act moves to its next stage.