The state of Texas paved the way for creating a Bitcoin (BTC) reserve by approving Senate Bill 21 with a large majority.
Known for its innovative steps in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, Texas is now preparing to be among the leading states by purchasing Bitcoin with the state budget. State Representative Lee Bratcher expressed confidence that if the bill becomes law, Texas Governor Greg Abbott will sign it. Bratcher noted that in his personal conversations with Abbott, he got the impression that the governor wants Texas to lead in Bitcoin, but the final decision is entirely at Abbott's discretion.
In March, after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve at the federal level, Texas will become the third state in the U.S. to create a Bitcoin reserve after New Hampshire and Arizona when Governor Greg Abbott signs it. The bill is expected to come to Governor Abbott's desk within one or two weeks.
Texas will initially be quite cautious about how much budget it allocates for the Bitcoin reserve. According to Lee Bratcher, the state could invest tens of millions of dollars at first. Bratcher emphasized that this amount is quite small compared to the state’s economic size, and the amount and timing of the investment will be left to the professional assessment of Texas financial auditors.
Texas, one of the most prominent states in the U.S. for Bitcoin mining and crypto entrepreneurship, meets the long-standing expectations of the cryptocurrency community in the region with this move. This move seems to further increase the importance of digital assets in the state's economic profile.
The price of Bitcoin reached a new peak of approximately $110,404 on the same day as these developments. Binance TR Bitcoin is trading at 4.3 million TL at the time of writing.