Texas Buys $5 Million BlackRock Bitcoin ETF for State Reserve Program

TLDR

• Texas bought $5 million of BlackRock’s IBIT Bitcoin ETF on November 20 as a placeholder investment
• The state has allocated $10 million total with another $5 million planned for direct self-custodied Bitcoin
• Wisconsin previously purchased $100 million of IBIT shares in May 2024 for its pension fund
• Texas is still developing its formal request for proposal and custodian contract for direct Bitcoin holdings
• New Hampshire and Arizona are also working on state Bitcoin reserve programs but have not made purchases yet

The Texas state government purchased $5 million worth of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) on November 20. A spokesman for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts confirmed the purchase serves as a placeholder investment while the state finalizes its direct Bitcoin custody plans.

The state legislature passed the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Investment Act earlier this year. The bill appropriated $10 million in total funding for the reserve. Texas has now deployed the first $5 million through the ETF purchase.

Building the Infrastructure

Texas issued a request for information in September seeking industry input on best practices for managing a state Bitcoin reserve. The deadline for submissions passed in October. The state is now working toward developing a formal request for proposal to select a custodian for direct Bitcoin holdings.

Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council, announced the purchase on social media platform X. He stated the remaining $5 million will go toward self-custodied Bitcoin once the custody process is complete. The purchase came when Bitcoin traded around $87,000 after declining from over $120,000.

The original reserve legislation requires assets to maintain a market capitalization above $500 billion for inclusion. Bitcoin currently meets this threshold. State Senator Charles Schwertner told reporters in October that Ethereum could join the reserve if it maintains the required market cap for 24 months.

Other State Actions

Wisconsin’s investment board purchased nearly $100 million worth of IBIT shares in May 2024 for its public employee pension fund. The state later sold its $350 million pension fund stake in the BlackRock ETF. Michigan has also made ETF investments through its pension system.

New Hampshire passed the first state Bitcoin reserve legislation but has not made any purchases yet. State Representative Keith Ammon confirmed no moves have been made as of this week. The state did authorize a $100 million Bitcoin bond through its Business Finance Authority last week for private sector development.

Federal and State Timeline

Arizona passed legislation earlier this year to use unclaimed crypto properties for building a state reserve. Multiple other states including Michigan and Massachusetts are considering similar proposals. Dennis Porter, CEO of the Satoshi Action Fund, expects more states to advance reserve proposals when legislatures reconvene in early 2026.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing work on a federal crypto reserve. Federal officials are waiting for Congressional authorization to proceed with implementation. The Trump administration remains in planning stages for the federal reserve program.

BlackRock’s IBIT fund is down approximately 10% year to date. The fund trades at $49.56 per share with minimal after-hours movement. Texas joins Harvard University and Abu Dhabi among recent institutional IBIT purchasers according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balachunas.

Texas completed its initial ETF purchase while continuing work on the custody infrastructure needed for direct Bitcoin holdings through its strategic reserve program.

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