SEC chair says whether US will seize Venezuela’s reported Bitcoin ‘remains to be seen

Paul Atkins, chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, said it “remains to be seen” what action, if any, the United States would take regarding reports of Venezuela’s Bitcoin holdings.

The remarks came in a Fox Business interview amid unverified claims that Venezuela may hold as much as $60 billion in Bitcoin, approximately 600,000 BTC.

Atkins said decisions about any potential seizure of Venezuela’s reported Bitcoin would be handled by others in the US administration, not the SEC.

Reports of Venezuela’s alleged holdings emerged after US forces reportedly unseated and captured President Nicolás Maduro and transferred him to the United States.

Several blockchain analytics firms have been unable to verify on-chain whether Venezuela actually holds the claimed amount of Bitcoin.

The interview occurred just days before the US Senate Banking Committee was to review the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, aimed at clarifying digital asset regulations.

The bill has passed the House of Representatives and seeks to give the Commodity Futures Trading Commission more authority over digital assets.

Banks and some crypto firms have expressed concerns about aspects of the draft legislation, including stablecoin reward provisions.

At the time of reporting, Bitcoin price was $91,320.14.