Arizona Senate Committee Approves Establishment of State Reserve Comprised of Three Cryptocurrencies, 2026/02/18 18:03:47

The Financial Committee of the Arizona Senate has approved, by a majority vote (four in favor and two against), a bill to establish a state-owned cryptocurrency reserve, which is set to include Bitcoin, XRP, and DigiByte.

The legislation was introduced by Republican Senator Mark Finchem. The bill is currently under review by the local Senate’s rules committee. For the bill to take effect, it must receive approval from the Senate, be passed by the House of Representatives, and be signed by the Governor of Arizona.

Finchem proposed that the state crypto reserve be managed by the state treasury. It is intended that the fund will hold digital assets that have been confiscated during criminal proceedings or transferred to the state, as well as assets acquired with funds allocated by lawmakers.

The bill permits the use of stablecoins, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and other digital assets that confer “economic rights or access rights” by authorities. Finchem believes that authorities should not directly purchase cryptocurrencies for the state reserve using budget funds, nor should they impose new taxes for this purpose.

The legislation outlines requirements for the storage of crypto assets. These assets must be held by a qualified custodian or in exchange-traded products of investment companies registered in Arizona. The bill allows the treasurer to invest funds from the reserve and lend digital assets for profit, but such lending should not pose financial risks to the state budget, the legislator clarified.

Last year, Republican Senator Wendy Rogers from Arizona proposed tax exemptions for crypto traders and suggested that organizations managing blockchain nodes should not face penalties. Previously, state authorities imposed restrictions on the use of crypto ATMs to combat fraud.