Investing.com-- Arizona lawmakers on Monday advanced a bill allowing state funds to invest in Bitcoin and establish a strategic reserve of the cryptocurrencies, furthering the bill for an eventual vote in the Senate.
The bill, which was co-sponsored by Senator Wendy Rogers (NYSE: ROG ) and Representative Jeff Weninger, was approved by the Senate Finance Committee on Monday. The bill now moves to the Senate Rules Committee and could eventually be up for vote in the Arizona State Senate.
The bill- SB 1025- allows the state to invest up to 10% of public funds into cryptocurrencies, and also has provisions to store digital assets within a Federal strategic reserve, should the U.S. Treasury choose to build such a reserve under President Donald Trump.
The bill, if approved, will make Arizona the first U.S. state to approve investing public funds in Bitcoin. But the bill still faces a long road to approval.
Rogers had in 2022 introduced a bill proposing Bitcoin be made legal tender, although the bill has since made little progress towards becoming law.
Speculation over a U.S. Bitcoin strategic reserve has grown in recent months, especially as President Donald Trump floated the possibility of creating one during his term.
Trump last week signed an executive order seeking to establish a crypto regulatory framework in the U.S., while also setting up a digital asset reserve. But he made no mention of Bitcoin in the order, raising some doubts over the prospect of a Bitcoin reserve.