Rumors say Venezuela has 60 billion dollars worth of Bitcoin. Will the US seize it? SEC: Whether to confiscate remains to be seen.

Rumors suggest Venezuela holds $60 billion worth of Bitcoin, and SEC Chair indicates whether assets will be seized remains to be seen. However, current on-chain evidence is insufficient to confirm asset ownership.

US SEC Chair Responds to Rumors of Venezuela Holding Bitcoin

As the US takes action against the Venezuelan regime, the market is buzzing about whether the US government will seize the rumored $60 billion in Bitcoin ($BTC) assets belonging to Venezuela.

In response, SEC Chairman Paul Atkins told Fox Business Network that he did not directly deny the possibility, only stating that the matter remains under observation.

He pointed out that handling potential crypto assets held by Venezuela is not currently his focus; this is the responsibility of other government departments. The SEC’s primary goal now is to establish clear regulatory frameworks, not asset confiscation.

Does Venezuela Really Hold $60 Billion in Bitcoin?

The rumor that Venezuela holds $60 billion in Bitcoin mainly stems from market speculation.

It is estimated that the Venezuelan government, since 2018, has converted approximately 600,000 Bitcoins through the sale of gold reserves and oil revenues via informal channels to evade international financial sanctions.

However, multiple blockchain analysis firms remain cautious about this speculation, mainly due to a lack of on-chain data to substantiate it.

Further Reading
Rumors suggest Venezuela is secretly exchanging gold for Bitcoin, valued at up to $60 billion? But on-chain evidence is lacking.

So far, analysts have not identified any single entity or wallet address holding such a large amount of Bitcoin, nor can they directly attribute any large-scale fund flows to the Venezuelan government or former President Maduro.

Market speculation also once suggested that Alex Saab, Venezuela’s detained Minister of Industry and Production, might possess Bitcoin private keys, but if true, the holdings would far exceed the foreign exchange reserves announced by the Central Bank of Venezuela, which conflicts with publicly available financial records.

Image source: Getty Images Venezuelan Minister of Industry and Production Alex Saab detained by the US

Even if there is Bitcoin, it might not be considered a national reserve?

Additionally, even if Venezuela is involved in cryptocurrency activities, whether these assets can be classified as “national reserves” remains questionable.

While Venezuela is one of Latin America’s countries with the highest crypto adoption rates, the government has also launched Petro and required oil buyers to use crypto wallets and pay in Tether ($USDT), but the country faces long-standing issues of structural corruption and governance failure.

Observers familiar with the local situation say that state-owned oil company PDVSA and crypto regulators have previously been involved in scandals involving large sums of money being secretly embezzled.

Therefore, even if the country has obtained Bitcoin through mining or trade, these funds are very likely to have flowed into the hands of individual power centers or underground networks, rather than into an auditable official treasury.

As a result, without on-chain evidence, it is difficult to confirm that the Venezuelan regime owns a “$60 billion national Bitcoin reserve” that could be directly seized by the US. What is known is that the US is currently taking over Venezuela’s oil sales and revenues to stabilize the country’s economy, rebuild the oil industry, and ensure US national interests.

Further Reading:
No more acting? Energy Secretary: US needs indefinite control over Venezuela’s oil; Trump to meet with oil industry leaders