Today, Oklahoma introduced a bill proposing the establishment of a strategic reserve of Bitcoin, joining a growing number of states looking to capitalize on the return potential of the cryptocurrency.

The proposed legislation, known as House Bill 1203 or the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, was introduced in the Oklahoma House of Representatives by state Rep. Cody Maynard.

The bill would allow Oklahoma pension funds and state savings accounts to allocate some of their assets to Bitcoin to "hedge against inflation."

The bill allows funds to be invested in any digital asset that has an average market value of $500 billion in the previous calendar year. Currently, only Bitcoin, with a market value of $1.97 trillion, meets this requirement.

Maynard said the assets would be managed responsibly to meet the needs of fund managers, provide residents with reliable returns, and protect purchasing power from inflationary pressures.

Prior to this, several states in the United States have proposed similar legislation aimed at establishing Bitcoin as a strategic reserve.

Last November, Pennsylvania introduced the Pennsylvania Bitcoin Strategic Reserve Act, which would authorize the state Treasury to invest 10% of its $7 billion reserves in Bitcoin.

A month later, Texas introduced a similar bill, the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, proposing to create a special fund in the state treasury to hold Bitcoin as a financial asset for at least five years.

In addition, Ohio, North Dakota and New Hampshire have also introduced Bitcoin reserve bills.

Dennis Porter, founder of the Bitcoin advocacy group Satoshi Action Fund, who is helping to develop the bills, said the goal of getting 12 states to introduce Bitcoin reserve legislation is halfway accomplished.

January 17, 2025