Governor Greg Abbott’s speedy enactment of a bill legally endorsing Bitcoin as a reserve currency for the Lone Star state has been praised by crypto advocates. Though only valued at $10 million, the Texas Bitcoin state fund is seen as a step in the right direction by its supporters.
“The future of finance is digital and the future of capital formation is in Texas!!” Texas Blockchain Council head Lee Bratcher posted on X on June 22, cheering the decision by Abbott to invest a small but significant proportion of state funds for the “eighth-largest economy in the world” in the flagship cryptocurrency.
Well might Bratcher get excited. The Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Bill makes the prosperous American state the first in the US to allocate reserve funds in Bitcoin.
Arizona and New Hampshire both passed similar laws endorsing digital currency, but stopped short of putting money into it. By contrast, the Texas Bitcoin state fund is precisely that, although for now it represents a tiny fraction of overall government money.
The bill was passed with relatively little fuss, going through the Senate and House in March and May respectively before being signed into law by Abbott this month.
Cautious Uptake of Crypto
The new law is not intended as a state cryptocurrency free-for-all. “To ensure financial prudence, the bill limits investments to cryptocurrencies that have maintained a market capitalization of at least $500 billion over the previous 12 months,” said Texas Policy Research, which provides legal scrutiny to lawmakers in the state.
To all intents and purposes, that limits the field to Bitcoin – for the foreseeable future at least.
Texas Policy Research added: “These refinements reflect an effort to balance innovation with accountability, ensuring that Texas does not overextend itself financially while exploring Bitcoin as a potential state-held asset.”
Parallel Bill Ring-Fences Bitcoin State Fund
Abbott didn’t stop there. He also signed into law House Bill 4488, which ensures that allocated crypto funds cannot be liquidated as part of any future financial restructuring by the state of Texas.
“This legislation standardizes the state’s recognition of cryptocurrency as a distinct financial category,” said AI Invest, commenting on the parallel bill.
Given that the Texas senate recently approved an overall $338 billion budget for 2025-2027, the $10 million allocated to Bitcoin may seem like a drop in the ocean.
But digital currency advocates like Bratcher have hailed it as a step in the right direction. Texans who wanted to see state adoption of cryptocurrency will undoubtedly be delighted with the development.
“We’re hoping to beat the federal government to the punch there in the name of friendly competition,” Bratcher said in February.
Thanks to Governor Abbott, Texas just has.
Author: Damien Black
The editorial team at #DisruptionBanking has taken all precautions to ensure that no persons or organizations have been adversely affected or offered any sort of financial advice in this article. This article is most definitely not financial advice.
#cryptocurrency #Bitcoin #Texas
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