Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below.<\/p>\n
Florida is again considering adding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to its balance sheet.<\/p>\n
House Bill 183, introduced<\/a> by state Rep. Webster Barnaby last week, would allow the state\u2019s chief financial officer to invest up to 10% of public funds, including the general revenue fund and the budget stabilization fund, in digital assets, from Bitcoin to non-fungible tokens.<\/p>\n The bill, if passed, would also allow the State Board of Administration, which primarily manages the Florida Retirement System\u2019s Trust Fund, to allocate 10% of its holdings to digital assets. The Florida Retirement System Pension Plan held<\/a> nearly $219 billion as of Sept. 30.<\/p>\n Don’t Miss:<\/p>\n The bill would also allow\u00a0 Florida\u2019s chief financial officer and other authorized officials to lend digital assets from state funds to generate additional yield, provided they are fully or over-collateralized and meet other fiduciary requirements.<\/p>\n The bill says that Bitcoin and other digital assets could help Florida preserve value lost to inflation, citing their price surge. Bitcoin, for example, was most recently trading near $109,000, up over 10% year-to-date.<\/p>\n The bill also cited Bitcoin\u2019s growing institutional acceptance, including from BlackRock (NYSE:BLK<\/a>), Fidelity and Franklin Templeton, as well as President Donald Trump\u2018s establishment<\/a> of a national Bitcoin strategic reserve.<\/p>\n Trending: Missed Nvidia and Tesla? RAD Intel Could Be the Next AI Powerhouse \u2014 Invest Now at Just $0.81 a Share<\/a><\/p>\n HB 183 is Florida\u2019s second attempt at establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve. Lawmakers filed strategic Bitcoin reserve bills in the state House<\/a> and Senate<\/a> in February. However, both bills failed to pass the committee stage before the end of the legislative session and were withdrawn<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cMost of the failed bills you see are because the state legislatures adjourned for the session,\u201d Julian Fahrer, founder of Bitcoin Laws, a website tracking Bitcoin legislation in the U.S., told<\/a> cryptocurrency news outlet The Block, expressing confidence that HB 183 could succeed where predecessors failed.<\/p>\n See Also: Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund Just Backed This Farmland Manager \u2014 And Accredited Investors Can Join the Same Fund<\/a><\/p>\n