White House signals crypto action at Bitcoin 2026

Patrick Witt, the White House’s top crypto adviser, used a panel at the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas on May 20 to signal that the Trump administration is preparing another crypto-related move from the executive branch. Forbes reported that Witt said the administration sees President Donald Trump’s January 23, 2025 executive order on digital assets as incomplete on its own and is working on what he called “a big step forward from the executive branch side.” That matters because the existing order — Executive Order 14178, published in the Federal Register on January 31, 2025 — already set out the administration’s digital-asset policy framework. It directed a presidential working group to propose a federal regulatory framework for digital assets, including stablecoins, and to evaluate the creation of a strategic national digital assets stockpile. (forbes.com) ### What exactly did Witt say in Las Vegas? Forbes reported on May 20 that Witt told the Bitcoin 2026 audience the administration believes Trump’s crypto executive order “needs to be followed up with legislation.” In the same appearance, Forbes said, Witt added that the White House was working on “a big step forward from the executive branch side.” (whitehouse.gov) The Forbes report described Witt as the White House’s top crypto adviser. Other recent crypto-industry coverage has also identified him as executive director of the President’s Council of Advisers for Digital Assets, the White House body handling digital-asset policy. (forbes.com) ### What is the order he was referring to? President Donald Trump signed the digital-assets order on January 23, 2025, according to a White House fact sheet released the same day. The White House said the order was meant to establish regulatory clarity for digital financial technology and to secure U.S. leadership in the digital-asset economy. (forbes.com) The White House fact sheet said the order created the Presidential Working Group on Digital Asset Markets. It tasked that group with developing a federal regulatory framework for digital assets, including stablecoins, and with evaluating the creation of a strategic national digital assets stockpile. (whitehouse.gov) The Federal Register text of Executive Order 14178 also said the administration’s policy includes support for lawful use of open blockchain networks, promotion of dollar-backed stablecoins, fair access to banking services for law-abiding participants, and a prohibition on agencies establishing or promoting a U.S. central bank digital currency. (whitehouse.gov) ### Why does Witt’s wording point to more executive action? Witt’s reference to “a big step forward from the executive branch side” suggests the administration is considering an action that does not wait for Congress, though he did not spell out the form it would take in the reported remarks. Forbes tied his comments to the White House’s broader crypto agenda and to market expectations around bitcoin policy. (federalregister.gov) A separate recent report, citing remarks by Witt at the same Las Vegas conference, said the administration had reached a “breakthrough” on the legal framework for a strategic bitcoin reserve and planned a major update within weeks. That account indicates the reserve or stockpile question is one area where the White House may be preparing a follow-on action, though that remains an inference from conference remarks rather than a formal announcement. (forbes.com) ### Is this about legislation, or about the White House acting on its own? Witt’s remarks, as quoted by Forbes, pointed to both tracks. He said the January 2025 order “needs to be followed up with legislation,” while also saying the administration was preparing another step “from the executive branch side.” (beincrypto.com) That lines up with the structure of the January 2025 order itself. The order set policy, created an interagency working group and called for recommendations, but it did not itself create a full statutory framework for crypto markets. Any broader rewrite of market structure, stablecoin rules or reserve authorities would still depend on Congress unless the administration acts within existing executive powers. (forbes.com) ### What should people watch next? The clearest next signal will be a White House statement, fact sheet or executive order, or a Federal Register publication tied to Executive Order 14178. Until then, Witt’s May 20 comments at Bitcoin 2026 stand as the administration’s latest public indication that another crypto policy step is being prepared. (forbes.com) (whitehouse.gov)