The U.S. House Financial Services Committee voted 28 to 21 in favor of H.R. 8957, the American Reserve Modernization Act of 2026, moving the legislation forward on September 16. This bill proposes the creation of two separate crypto-related reserves at the Treasury Department: a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile.
Key features of H.R. 8957
Under H.R. 8957, Bitcoin will be held in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which requires the government to hold these assets for at least 20 years. Other digital assets, including tokens beyond Bitcoin, will be placed in the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile.
Federal agencies that currently possess any form of digital assets must report their holdings within 60 days of the bill’s enactment, with the Treasury mandated to assume custody within 30 days after those disclosures.
To promote transparency, the legislation calls for public quarterly Proof of Reserve disclosures. These reports are intended to ensure that government-held cryptocurrency assets can be monitored and audited by the public and market participants.
House Financial Services advanced H.R. 8957 with a 28-21 vote, bringing both the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, which covers assets like XRP, one step closer to reality. This marks the first formal congressional progress for such legislation.
XRP’s status in the government crypto stockpile
XRP is specifically identified for inclusion in the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile. President Donald Trump named XRP, along with Solana and Cardano, when outlining his administration’s initial crypto reserve proposal. His executive order from March 2025 laid the legal groundwork, but H.R. 8957 provides the statutory measures needed for permanence.
The bill’s recognition of XRP as a government-held digital asset separates it from most other cryptocurrencies that lack official acknowledgment. This marks the first occasion XRP has been officially recognized in a congressional vote related to digital asset reserves.
Long-term effects and market context
The presence of XRP in the Digital Asset Stockpile builds a formal institutional basis for the token’s long-term significance, suggesting a level of acceptance within U.S. governmental policy frameworks. The inclusion of protection laws also prevents agencies from selling, encumbering, or disposing of digital assets, including XRP, during the transition to Treasury custody.
Congressional acknowledgment of XRP as part of a strategic reserve grants it a new level of legitimacy with both institutional and retail market participants, as agencies will be required to report and maintain these assets under strict transparency rules.
Meanwhile, traditional financial markets are experiencing a shift as Wall Street increasingly explores Web3 infrastructure. Investors are turning to platforms such as 1stepSwap, which enables direct ownership of U.S. equities, gold, and silver within crypto wallets by tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs) and providing rapid price discovery across markets—bypassing traditional brokers and intermediaries in the process.
Next steps for the bill
Despite this legislative progress, H.R. 8957 is not yet law. The bill must still pass a full vote on the House floor, followed by Senate approval, before it can be presented to the President for signature. At this stage, the timeline for those further votes remains unconfirmed.
This vote follows the recent Senate decision to reject the CLARITY Act, adding renewed attention to digital asset policy. The inclusion of XRP and other tokens in formal reserve structures will remain under close observation as the legislation advances through the next phases of Congress.
