ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood made an unusual forecast that U.S. President Donald Trump will directly buy bitcoin (BTC) in 2026 as a national strategic asset.

A blockchain outlet, The Crypto Basic, reported on Jan. 9 that Wood discussed the U.S. government's bitcoin reserve policy and its future direction in the latest episode of "Bitcoin Brainstorm" with Bitcoin Park founder Rod Roudi and ARK Invest head of digital asset research Lorenzo Valente.

Trump approved an executive order establishing a strategic bitcoin reserve he had promised during the election campaign, but the reserve currently holds only bitcoin seized during enforcement proceedings. The executive order limits bitcoin purchases to a "budget-neutral" approach. As a result, the government has not been able to move to actual purchases even after about a year has passed.

Wood said the 2026 midterm elections could be a turning point. She said Trump could go beyond holding seized assets and move to direct bitcoin purchases before the election to avoid becoming a lame duck in the latter part of his term and to deliver visible results.

Wood said in particular that Trump could work with David Sacks, the undersecretary in charge of cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence, to improve regulatory clarity and push adoption of cryptocurrencies in earnest. She said the initial concept targeted the U.S. government holding up to 1,000,000 BTC, but no substantive purchase steps have yet been taken.

Earlier, Senator Cynthia Lummis argued that a bitcoin bill under which the U.S. government buys and holds up to 1,000,000 BTC could help resolve the national debt problem. The bill has made no clear progress in Congress so far.

Wood stressed that Trump has enough political reasons to change the direction of the bitcoin reserve policy. She cited that support from the cryptocurrency community contributed to his election victory, that it could again play an important role in the midterm elections, and that Trump’s family has made substantial investments in bitcoin and digital assets.

Wood also offered a second prediction alongside her outlook for bitcoin, saying U.S. economic growth will strengthen further in 2026. She said business-friendly policies such as low effective corporate tax rates and accelerated depreciation will encourage more investment. Accelerated depreciation allows companies to fully deduct major investment costs in the first year of business, sharply reducing the tax burden. Wood said these policies could spur factory construction in the United States and attract bitcoin mining facilities.

Wood suggested the U.S. government could expand indirect bitcoin exposure by investing in Strategy, a company that holds more than 600,000 bitcoins. She said that could help the government reach its strategic reserve target faster.

Valente noted that the current executive order still allows bitcoin purchases only through a budget-neutral approach. He added that additional political determination is needed before an actual policy shift.