The US Marshals Service is unable to confirm how much Bitcoin it holds or how it could affect the US crypto reserve program

On February 22nd, according to sources familiar with the matter, the US Marshals Service (USMS) is unable to confirm the current amount of Bitcoin it holds and may even struggle to provide a rough estimate. This management loophole may affect the proposal by White House crypto director David Sacks for the US government to establish a crypto reserve program, which could change the way the government handles seized crypto assets and may even involve purchasing cryptocurrencies. At present, USMS still relies on Excel records and manual operations, which limits management efficiency. External experts warn that the institution may lose billions of dollars at any time due to operational errors. USMS began seeking private enterprise cooperation as early as 2018, but the bidding process was delayed for many years. After awarding contracts to BitGo and Anchorage Digital in 2021, both contracts were invalidated due to their size not meeting the "small business" criteria. In 2024, USMS will readjust its strategy and award two new contracts to manage different categories of cryptocurrency assets.