Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell confirmed the bank's position on the Bitcoin reserve from an existing legal perspective.
Speaking at a regular conference after announcing monetary decisions, Fed chairman Powell said that the US central bank cannot own Bitcoin (BTC) and, therefore, cannot hold a BTC reserve.
The governor of the bank confirmed that the current laws do not allow Fed BTC reserve. America's apex bank is also not interested in any law changes that would allow a formally government-recognized BTC store, Powell said.
Powell shared the comments shortly after last year's Federal Open Market Committee, where the Fed name 25 basis point cut to interest rates. Bitcoin continued its downward trend after the rate cut news, falling 2.1% in an hour and hovering around $101,400 as of writing.
Powell's Bitcoin views are not new
This is not the first time that Powell has made these statements. Fed Powell has repeated the same assertion at several previous FOMC meetings.
However, this is one of the first times Powell has said that since the US elected Donald Trump as its 47th president. Powell's comments seem to have attracted attention this time because of Trump's plan for a national strategic Bitcoin reserve.
While it is extensive support with legislators like Senator Cynthia Lumiss and industry leaders in general, a few crypto experts, such as Castle Island Venture founding partner Nic Carter, were skeptical of the move. Carter believed that the creation of a US-led BTC reserve could cast doubt on the strength of the dollar, and its role as a global reserve currency.
