Arizona Enacts Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Law; Texas SB 21 Advances With $500M Annual Purchase Plan

Arizona has enacted a new law establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Fund, making it the first U.S. state to officially create a Bitcoin reserve. The legislation, signed by Governor Katie Hobbs, ended the forced liquidation of unclaimed cryptocurrency and allows the state to secure digital assets by allocating earnings from staked assets. This move follows the passage of Arizona's second Bitcoin reserve bill, SB 1373, which overcame a previous veto of bill SB 1025.

Meanwhile, Texas is progressing with its own Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill, SB 21, which recently passed out of the House DOGE Committee with an 8-5 vote and is headed for a final floor vote. Texas plans to purchase $500 million worth of Bitcoin annually under this legislation. These developments come amid broader institutional interest in Bitcoin as a reserve asset, highlighted by a $1.7 trillion Morgan Stanley report suggesting Bitcoin has a sufficient market capitalization to be considered a U.S. government reserve asset, with a potential allocation of $370 billion. Additionally, Bernstein analysts project that companies worldwide could allocate up to $330 billion to Bitcoin treasuries within five years. Internationally, a Taiwan congressman has urged the national central bank to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve, citing the country’s $580 billion in reserves. The growing acceptance of Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset reflects increasing institutional and governmental recognition of its market size and potential role in financial reserves.