Key Notes
- Texas House passes Senate Bill 21 to establish a Bitcoin reserve.
- Bill awaits Governor Abbott’s expected approval.
- Texas would become the second U.S.state to hold a Bitcoin treasury reserve.
With the Texas House of Representatives passing groundbreaking legislation to establish a Bitcoin BTC $96 611 24h volatility: 2.1% Market cap: $1.92 T Vol. 24h: $29.09 B reserve, Texas is set to become the second state to create such a fund.
The Texas House of Representatives passed the Senate Bill 21 in a 101-42 vote in the third reading, gaining support from various political parties. Previously approved in the Senate with a 25-5 vote, the bill will next undergo a concurrence vote on House amendments before being sent to Governor Greg Abbott, who is widely expected to sign it into law given his strong and consistent support for cryptocurrency.
Senate Bill 21, authored by Senator Charles Schwertner and introduced in the House by Representative Giovanni Capriglione, aims to enable Texas to hold cryptocurrency reserves for assets with a market capitalization exceeding $500 billion.
Currently, Bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency that meets this criterion. Supporters of the bill believe it will allow the state to benefit from holding Bitcoin while positioning Texas as a leader and innovator in the financial sector.
The bill also states other guidelines that must be followed before the state’s funds are used in crypto investment. If passed, the Bitcoin reserves would be overseen by the state’s comptroller.
Crypto Reserves in the U.S States
Texas is not the only state to have considered creating a Bitcoin reserve. New Hampshire currently holds the distinction of being the first U.S. state to establish such a reserve, while other states like Florida and Arizona attempted similar initiatives but were halted due to concerns over the volatility of cryptocurrency.
The Arizona governor rejected the Senate Bill 1373 on May 12 that would have seen the creation of a BTC reserve in the state and allowed the treasury to use up to 10% of state’s funds to hold cryptocurrency. The governor thought it was unwise to use taxpayers’ money to buy cryptocurrency.
The Arizona governor did not completely reject crypto usage in the state, thought, as they allowed the creation of Bitcoin ATMs, but stipulated strict guidelines that must be followed by operators to protect users.
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