North Carolina House of Representatives Wants to Spend $50K to Study the Benefits of Holding Bitcoin

The North Carolina House of Representatives has passed a bill that includes provisions to investigate the acquisition and potential benefits of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

House Bill 721, titled the “State Precious Metals Depository Study,” aims to examine the potential impact of the state securely holding, insuring, and liquidating virtual currency, with a particular emphasis on bitcoin. 73 votes were cast in favor of the law, 40 against, while seven participants abstained. Now it has been sent to the Senate for further consideration.

• Bill is launching a $50,000 study to analyze the expected benefits of investing a portion of the General Fund in digital assets, a hedge against inflation and systemic credit risks.
• It will also research whether such holding by the state would help reduce overall portfolio volatility and enhance portfolio returns over time.
• Apart from exploring the benefits of the asset class, the Bill also highlights the need to assess various factors such as costs, benefits and safeguards related to various depository options.
• Investigating the feasibility of a privately managed depository, leveraging another state’s depository, or establishing a state-administered depository within North Carolina are some of the other focus areas of study outlined in the bill.
• With this move, North Carolina’s Department of State Treasurers appears to have determined the ideal custodian, guardian and administrator for crypto assets held by the state.
• The latest development comes more than a month after North Carolina’s House of Representatives voted unanimously in favor of a bill banning the acceptance of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) by government entities.

The North Carolina House of Representatives has passed a bill that includes provisions to investigate the acquisition and potential benefits of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

House Bill 721, titled the “State Precious Metals Depository Study,” aims to examine the potential impact of the state securely holding, insuring, and liquidating virtual currency, with a particular emphasis on bitcoin. 73 votes were cast in favor of the law, 40 against, while seven participants abstained. Now it has been sent to the Senate for further consideration.

• Bill is launching a $50,000 study to analyze the expected benefits of investing a portion of the General Fund in digital assets, a hedge against inflation and systemic credit risks.
• It will also research whether such holding by the state would help reduce overall portfolio volatility and enhance portfolio returns over time.
• Apart from exploring the benefits of the asset class, the Bill also highlights the need to assess various factors such as costs, benefits and safeguards related to various depository options.
• Investigating the feasibility of a privately managed depository, leveraging another state’s depository, or establishing a state-administered depository within North Carolina are some of the other focus areas of study outlined in the bill.
• With this move, North Carolina’s Department of State Treasurers appears to have determined the ideal custodian, guardian and administrator for crypto assets held by the state.
• The latest development comes more than a month after North Carolina’s House of Representatives voted unanimously in favor of a bill banning the acceptance of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) by government entities.