New Hampshire Allows Public Investment in Bitcoin — First in U.S. History
Date: 2025-05-07 Author: Henry Casey Categories: IN WORLD
For the first time among all U.S. states, New Hampshire has officially allowed its government to invest part of its public funds in digital assets, including Bitcoin. State Governor Kelly Ayotte signed the law HB302, which gives the local treasury the authority to place up to 5% of its total assets in cryptocurrencies and precious metals.
The document, which began its journey back in January, has passed both state legislative bodies — the House of Representatives and the Senate. According to the new law, cryptocurrencies that are permissible to invest in must have a market capitalization of at least $500 million. To date, only Bitcoin meets these requirements among digital assets.
Other states have also attempted to legitimize the placement of budget reserves in crypto instruments, but to no avail. In Arizona, the House of Representatives supported a similar bill, but Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed it on May 2. In Florida, both bills on a similar topic were withdrawn from consideration.
Several other states — Oklahoma, Montana, Pennsylvania, both Dakotas, and Wyoming — have also attempted to create state cryptocurrency reserves, but they failed at the legislative stage.
Meanwhile, at the federal level, President Donald Trump ordered the formation of a cryptocurrency task force in March to assess the possibility of creating a national digital asset reserve. This step may mark a move toward broader recognition of cryptocurrencies in the framework of US government financial policy.
Thus, New Hampshire became the first and so far only state to implement a legal framework for including bitcoin in the system of state investments, which may serve as a precedent for other regions of the country.
