Lone Star State Could Become First to Fund Cryptocurrency Stockpile as Bill Awaits Governor’s Signature
The Texas House of Representatives has passed a landmark piece of legislation that would authorize the state to establish its own cryptocurrency reserve—placing Texas on course to become the first U.S. state to actively fund a public bitcoin stockpile.
Senate Bill 21, which cruised through the House with a 105–23 vote, now heads to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk. The governor has ten days to sign or veto the bill, or let it become law without his signature. Given the strong support, any potential veto could face an override.
The bill enables Texas to acquire and hold digital assets—primarily bitcoin—under the control of the state comptroller. This marks a significant policy shift for a state known for its traditionally conservative financial stance.
“Texas can take a leadership role in the evolving digital economy,” said Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, during floor debate. He called the bill “a forward-thinking measure” aimed at “recognizing digital assets not as a trend but as a strategic opportunity” to boost the state’s financial resilience.
The bill’s passage also coincides with renewed enthusiasm in the crypto market. Bitcoin prices rose more than 3% early Wednesday, topping a record high of $109,000. That momentum has encouraged legislators and industry advocates alike.
“It is a specific signal to our federal government,” said Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, who introduced the bill in February. “The federal government can’t continue to spend like this and expect our country to be as prosperous as it was in the past.”
Still, not everyone is convinced. Critics, including Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, expressed concern about limited regulatory oversight and the potential risk to taxpayers. “The main reason [for voting no] was because it offered little oversight,” Reynolds said. “So I thought it was maybe probably too volatile for us to really be doing it based at the taxpayers’ expense, and at the risk of the general public.”
The bill lacks specifics on the amount of public funds to be allocated. However, language in the Senate budget may allow funding to materialize in the near future. Should the plan proceed, Texas would follow New Hampshire, which created a crypto reserve in name—but become the first to actually finance it.
“We’re recommending prudent standards,” said Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council. “It’ll be a negligible amount in the grand scheme of things for Texas.”
He added, “I think what it represents is Texas leaning forward. We are welcoming to capital formation and jobs and entrepreneurs that are coming from all over the country, particularly the West Coast.”
Crypto proponents argue that the reserve could diversify the state’s investment portfolio and encourage further industry investment. Meanwhile, detractors see the effort as a contradiction of crypto’s decentralized ethos.
“If you go back to the roots of what crypto was created for, it was created to be a decentralized currency to have government out of things,” said John Griffin, a finance professor at the University of Texas at Austin. “But yet now you’re in a situation where you’re trying to get the government to prop it up.”
Nationally, momentum is building for similar legislation. President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order to establish a federal crypto stockpile. States like Arizona, Ohio, and North Dakota are exploring related proposals.
As the political and economic stakes mount, all eyes will be on Texas to see if it leads the charge into the next chapter of digital asset adoption in government finance.
