Latest news with #UnitedStatesDigitalAsset
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
8 States Changing Their Crypto Policies — Is Yours One of Them?
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've surely heard about cryptocurrency by now or have at least heard the term. Over the past several years, cryptocurrency has emerged as an alternative currency that can be bought and sold as a digital asset. While some have embraced crypto like President Trump, others have not and this includes some U.S. states. Read Next: For You: PYMNTS reported that since Trump took office for his second term, he's pushed the idea of creating a crypto reserve with plans to make the U.S. the capital of cryptocurrency. In March, Trump signed an executive order to create a 'Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.' The order mandates the establishment of a 'United States Digital Asset Stockpile' to serve as a secure account for the management of federally held digital assets. Discover Next: It's explained that the U.S. government currently holds a significant amount of Bitcoin (BTC), but has yet to implement a policy to maximize Bitcoin as a 'unique store of value in the global financial system.' Ultimately, Trump wants to harness the power of crypto to the country's advantage. While the president is taking action to make crypto a relevant store of value at the federal level, some states that initially set out to establish their own crypto reserves are walking back the idea. Some states had plans to allocate a percentage of their public funds to invest in Bitcoin. But now, these states are rejecting the proposed crypto legislation: Florida Arizona Montana North Dakota Oklahoma Pennsylvania South Dakota Wyoming For example, AInvest reported that a pair of bills proposed in Florida, House Bill 487 and Senate Bill 550, were created to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve at the state level. However, lawmakers are walking back their legislative efforts. Ultimately, the bills faced opposition and pushback before passage and were withdrawn. The state's legislative inaction could slow down the adoption and relevance of Bitcoin as a viable digital asset. In Arizona, similar crypto legislation made it further than it did in Florida. It passed both chambers of government, only to be vetoed by the state's governor. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs ultimately rejected legislation that planned to invest part of the state's retirement fund into Bitcoin. 'Arizonans' retirement funds are not the place for the state to try untested investments like virtual currency,' Hobbs wrote in a letter to the state senate president, as reported by PYMNTS. Mitrade explained that in Montana, the state's proposed Inflation Protection Act, which was passed by the House Business and Labor Committee, included the creation of a state Bitcoin reserve fund. However, the legislation was voted down by the full House; the final vote was 41 in favor and 59 against. The debate over the proposed bill included proponents who said it was a smart way to enhance state funds and opponents labeled the bill as speculative and a risky use of taxpayer money. Particularly at the state level, there is continued debate over whether cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are still considered speculative assets or not. While some digital assets have seen impressive gains, they can also be highly volatile and result in major losses (including Bitcoin). Establishing crypto reserves at the state level will require overcoming significant political opposition and regulatory challenges. Editor's note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on Sources: PYMNTS, 'States Halting Efforts to Create Strategic Bitcoin Reserves.' The White House, 'Establishment of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and United States Digital Asset Stockpile.' This article originally appeared on 8 States Changing Their Crypto Policies — Is Yours One of Them? Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
8 States Changing Their Crypto Policies — Is Yours One of Them?
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've surely heard about cryptocurrency by now or have at least heard the term. Over the past several years, cryptocurrency has emerged as an alternative currency that can be bought and sold as a digital asset. While some have embraced crypto like President Trump, others have not and this includes some U.S. states. Read Next: For You: PYMNTS reported that since Trump took office for his second term, he's pushed the idea of creating a crypto reserve with plans to make the U.S. the capital of cryptocurrency. In March, Trump signed an executive order to create a 'Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.' The order mandates the establishment of a 'United States Digital Asset Stockpile' to serve as a secure account for the management of federally held digital assets. Discover Next: It's explained that the U.S. government currently holds a significant amount of Bitcoin (BTC), but has yet to implement a policy to maximize Bitcoin as a 'unique store of value in the global financial system.' Ultimately, Trump wants to harness the power of crypto to the country's advantage. While the president is taking action to make crypto a relevant store of value at the federal level, some states that initially set out to establish their own crypto reserves are walking back the idea. Some states had plans to allocate a percentage of their public funds to invest in Bitcoin. But now, these states are rejecting the proposed crypto legislation: Florida Arizona Montana North Dakota Oklahoma Pennsylvania South Dakota Wyoming For example, AInvest reported that a pair of bills proposed in Florida, House Bill 487 and Senate Bill 550, were created to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve at the state level. However, lawmakers are walking back their legislative efforts. Ultimately, the bills faced opposition and pushback before passage and were withdrawn. The state's legislative inaction could slow down the adoption and relevance of Bitcoin as a viable digital asset. In Arizona, similar crypto legislation made it further than it did in Florida. It passed both chambers of government, only to be vetoed by the state's governor. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs ultimately rejected legislation that planned to invest part of the state's retirement fund into Bitcoin. 'Arizonans' retirement funds are not the place for the state to try untested investments like virtual currency,' Hobbs wrote in a letter to the state senate president, as reported by PYMNTS. Mitrade explained that in Montana, the state's proposed Inflation Protection Act, which was passed by the House Business and Labor Committee, included the creation of a state Bitcoin reserve fund. However, the legislation was voted down by the full House; the final vote was 41 in favor and 59 against. The debate over the proposed bill included proponents who said it was a smart way to enhance state funds and opponents labeled the bill as speculative and a risky use of taxpayer money. Particularly at the state level, there is continued debate over whether cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are still considered speculative assets or not. While some digital assets have seen impressive gains, they can also be highly volatile and result in major losses (including Bitcoin). Establishing crypto reserves at the state level will require overcoming significant political opposition and regulatory challenges. Editor's note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on Sources: PYMNTS, 'States Halting Efforts to Create Strategic Bitcoin Reserves.' The White House, 'Establishment of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and United States Digital Asset Stockpile.' This article originally appeared on 8 States Changing Their Crypto Policies — Is Yours One of Them?
Boston Globe
18-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Trump's ‘Strategic Bitcoin Reserve' makes no sense
Advertisement Has the plan worked? Yes — and no. The good news for bitcoin fans is that bitcoin became spectacularly popular: By the start of this year, the once-worthless digital ledger entries were fetching more than $100,000 each. The bad news is that, instead of taking the place of paper dollars and bank deposits in routine payments, bitcoins are mostly being hoarded, or 'HODLed' in bitcoiner argot, leaving the dollar as secure as ever. The change in bitcoin's status, from would-be alternative currency to digital get-rich-quick scheme, has in turn changed bitcoin fans' attitude toward the government. Inspired by El Salvador's example — its government began governments to reach for it. Seeing a chance to win over a young and growing constituency, and sometimes buying the hype themselves, politicians have joined their cause. So it happened that, during the run-up to last year's presidential election, both Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was then running against him, proposed official bitcoin stockpiles. Trump called for making some 200,000 coins already in the federal government's possession 'the core' of a Advertisement Kennedy's extreme plan went nowhere, and Of course, champions of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve don't say that its only purpose is gratifying the bitcoin lobby. The White House says its plan is aimed at 'positioning the United States as a leader among nations in government digital asset strategy.' Others say that a bitcoin reserve will help the government pay down its debt. Still others believe that a bitcoin reserve will directly strengthen the dollar. The list of justifications for a government bitcoin stockpile is long, not because there are many good ones, but because there are none, so the schemes' apologists must keep trying. Just what 'digital asset strategy' the Trump administration has in mind, apart from pleasing bitcoin enthusiasts, is anybody's guess. The other justifications are less vague, but no less inadequate. Take the BITCOIN Act's claim that a bitcoin stockpile will help the government pay off its debt. For that to be true, two things have to happen. First, bitcoin's value must go up — a lot. For example, at today's interest rates, the plan's million-coin stash Advertisement The claim that an official bitcoin hoard will strengthen the dollar is just as dubious. It assumes, first, that a bitcoin hoard will serve the same purpose as the 8,133 metric tons of gold mostly kept at Fort Knox, and second, that all that gold is itself propping up the dollar. Even granting the first assumption, the second is false: Gold Ironically, the White House's plan hasn't done much for bitcoin itself. By merely preventing the sale of bitcoin already in the government's hands, it disappointed bitcoiners looking forward to further government-funded capital gains. And by also providing for a 'United States Digital Asset Stockpile' to be at least partly 'capitalized' by rival cryptocurrencies, besides opening a Pandora's box of potential conflicts of interest (some Trump family members and administration officials Advertisement But bitcoin HODLers may yet have the last laugh. The executive order leaves the door open to further 'budget neutral' acquisitions of it and other cryptocurrencies, meaning ones that won't involve more government spending or borrowing. That seems like a mere crack. But taxpayers beware: 'Budget neutral' can mean lots of things.
South China Morning Post
07-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Trump's ‘cyber summit' gives digital currency new prominence and a large US role
US President Donald Trump's inaugural 'crypto summit' at the White House on Friday was characterised by many of his classic touches: breaking tradition, teasing potentially risky bets and offering up US government resources in a new and starkly different way. Advertisement Hours before it was due to start, Trump announced the signing of an executive order establishing a 'Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and United States Digital Asset Stockpile'. Analysts cautioned that this could place US assets in a highly volatile medium that many consider speculative. 'I will make sure the US is the Crypto Capital of the World,' Trump said earlier this week on social media, announcing that the reserve would involve five cryptocurrencies: bitcoin, ether, XRP, solana and cardano. But the executive order largely focused on bitcoin. Advertisement 'Bitcoin is often referred to as 'digital gold',' it read. 'Just as it is in our country's interest to thoughtfully manage national ownership and control of any other resource, our nation must harness, not limit, the power of digital assets for our prosperity.' Unlike ordinary paper currency, cryptocurrency is not issued by a central government, instead operating on a decentralised digital network. As such, digital currencies have no intrinsic value or legislated status as legal tender and are only worth what buyers are willing to pay.
