“17 years after the white paper, the bitcoin network is still operational and more resilient than ever,” Bessent posted to X, adding: “Bitcoin never shuts down,” in a jab at the U.S. Democratic Party over the ongoing U.S. government shutdown—“Senate Democrats could learn something from that.”

The bitcoin white paper, published by the anonymous person or group of people going by Satoshi Nakamoto on October 31 2008, is just nine pages long and outlines how the bitcoin network would work.

Bessent’s comments were seized on by bitcoin and crypto traders as a sign that the Trump administration remains committed to the technology.

“Pay attention to the signals. This is a signal,” James Lavish, a director at bitcoin treasury company and asset manager Strive, posted to X.

In August, Bessent triggered bitcoin price volatility when he suggested the U.S. government wouldn’t buy more bitcoin for president Donald Trump’s promised U.S. bitcoin reserve to rival its gold reserve, as well as revealing the U.S. holds far fewer bitcoin than previously thought.

Bessent sought to clarify his comments on X, saying: “Treasury is committed to exploring budget-neutral pathways to acquire more bitcoin to expand the reserve, and to execute on the president’s promise to make the United States the ‘bitcoin superpower of the world,'” and calling the “bitcoin that has been finally forfeited to the federal government … the foundation of the strategic bitcoin reserve that president Trump established in his March executive order.”

Since then, president Donald Trump has been revealed to be one of America’s largest bitcoin investors and has recommitted to making the U.S. the crypto capital of the world.

Sign up now for CryptoCodex—A free crypto newsletter that will get you ahead of the market

Meanwhile, many bitcoin and crypto market traders are betting the bitcoin price rally expected in October will now happen in the final two months of the year, pointing to exchange-traded funds (ETFs) continuing to buy more bitcoin and the Federal Reserve further cutting interest rates.

“Our base case sees bitcoin rising towards $140,000, with total ETF inflows between $10 and $15 billion not being surprising,” analysts with the cryto exchange Bitfinex said in emailed comments.

“Our view is that October demonstrated resilience, with an all-time-high crash and rebound marking a reset in the bull cycle. November may extend gains towards the $140,000 base case as ETFs and a dovish Fed policy support momentum. For most investors, bitcoin continues to serve as a hedge amid currency volatility.”