Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, informed Congress on Wednesday that a node operated by the U.S. government is currently active on the Bitcoin network. This setup is intended solely for conducting security-related tests and operational evaluations, not for mining purposes.
In his statement to the House Armed Services Committee, Admiral Paparo emphasized, “We have a node on the Bitcoin network right now.” He elaborated that its use is focused on monitoring activities and executing various operational tests aimed at securing networks using Bitcoin’s protocol. The decentralized nature of the Bitcoin blockchain involves tens of thousands of nodes worldwide that ensure the integrity and security of the network.
Despite only running one node, U.S. involvement might attract scrutiny due to Bitcoin’s reputation for “censorship resistance”—a feature designed to prevent control by powerful nation-states. However, Paparo highlighted that this experimentation phase underscores Bitcoin’s value as a cryptographic tool and technology rather than a financial asset to be amassed.
The Admiral described the military’s interest in Bitcoin primarily from a computer science perspective, viewing it as an innovative proof-of-work mechanism for network security enhancement. He also acknowledged that maintaining global dominance of the U.S. dollar aligns with American military interests. Paparo pointed out that the GENIUS Act, which was enacted last summer under President Donald Trump to legalize stablecoins pegged to the dollar, represents progress in this direction.