Former Trump crypto adviser: “It’s not enough for the U.S. to just like Bitcoin…government action is needed”

David Bailey, who served as a crypto adviser in the Donald Trump administration, argued that the U.S. government must take more concrete steps to expand adoption of Bitcoin (BTC).

According to a Cointelegraph report on the 3rd (local time), Bailey said at the Bitcoin Investor Week conference in New York that “in the end, it’s not enough to just like Bitcoin.” He stressed that “the Trump administration was an important first step, but what’s needed now is real execution—not just words.”

Bailey currently serves as CEO and chairman of the Bitcoin treasury company KindlyMD.

He specifically pointed out that the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve executive order signed in March 2025 has not led to actual purchases. “A year has passed, but we don’t even know exactly how much Bitcoin we hold,” he said.

According to Arkham Research, the U.S. government currently holds 378,372 BTC, worth about $22.48 billion. However, most of that amount is understood to be assets seized during criminal forfeiture processes, with no new purchases having been made.

David Sacks, the White House’s AI and crypto czar, has previously said that any additional purchases would have to be “budget-neutral,” without tax hikes or an expansion of national debt.

Bailey emphasized the importance of policy execution, saying, “If you’re not actually deploying political capital, the outcome will be the same whether you like Bitcoin or hate it.” He added that what’s needed is not merely expressions of support, but institutional groundwork and the mobilization of funding.

Still, he projected that Bitcoin’s long-term prospects remain unchanged. “Whether it’s four years, 10 years, or 20 years, a government with a Bitcoin-friendly framework will eventually emerge,” he said.

Bailey said, “If every year more people hold Bitcoin and more voters own Bitcoin, change will be inevitable.”