UNCLE SAM LEARNS TO HODL
Uncle Sam stands on the Treasury steps with one hand resting on a monumental Bitcoin. Beneath it, a small plaque states the new position plainly: not for sale. Behind him, Alexander Hamilton's statue watches over a very different kind of reserve asset.
On 6 March 2025, President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14233, establishing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. Treasury was directed to administer the reserve using eligible Bitcoin already in its possession following final forfeiture. Other federal agencies were asked to assess their authority to transfer qualifying holdings.
Bitcoin deposited in the reserve was to be retained rather than sold. The order also created a separate US Digital Asset Stockpile for assets other than Bitcoin, with different management rules. For additional Bitcoin, Treasury and Commerce were directed to develop budget-neutral acquisition strategies that would impose no extra costs on taxpayers. The starting point was existing government holdings, not an automatic market-buying programme.
The card turns that policy into a physical gesture. Uncle Sam steadies the coin instead of offering it to a buyer, while the Treasury and its first Secretary place the scene within the history of public finance. A familiar national character has acquired a new habit: holding on.
Sources & the artist’s interpretation
Sources: Executive Order 14233, official text ; White House, 6 March fact sheet ; Treasury, South Plaza and Hamilton statue . Uncle Sam and the giant coin are fictional symbols of government holding policy, not a physical reserve or an actual Treasury installation. The caption is editorial.
