Florida Pensions Take $1.85 Billion Leap Into Crypto

The state pension fund in Florida made a bold move to align itself with the vision of US President-elect Donald Trump for a strategic Bitcoin reserve.

Florida’s state officials announced that the pension fund will invest $1.85 billion worth of members’ contributions into Bitcoin to diversify its investment portfolio.

Bitcoin Exposure

The head of the Florida Blockchain Business Association (FBBA) announced that $1.85 billion of Florida’s pension fund is being considered for Bitcoin investment, a move backed by state leaders.

FBBA president Samuel Armes said in a post that Florida will launch a “strategic Bitcoin reserve”, adding that the state has a great chance of creating the BTC reserve in the first quarter of next year.

Armes believes that the Bitcoin investment would push through because of the pro-Bitcoin leaders such as the Speaker of the Florida House, Danny Perez, and Governor Ron DeSantis, saying that Perez “understands the technology very well” while DeSantis is among the most pro-Bitcoin governors in the United States.

Florida is going to launch a strategic Bitcoin reserve, and here’s how we’re going to do it 👇

Florida has a very good chance of creating a strategic Bitcoin reserve this session, which starts in Q1 of 2025.

Here’s what you need to know:

The Speaker of the Florida House, Danny… pic.twitter.com/JJRNU1V7ZI

— Samuel Armes (@samuelarmes) December 3, 2024

Pension Fund Goes Crypto 

Armes suggested that one way to build a Bitcoin reserve in Florida is by allowing the state pension fund to invest $1.85 billion in Bitcoin.

“Leverage our $185.7B pension fund to allocate a small percentage to Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation,” Armes said in a post.

The FBBA head explained that it would not be the first time that Florida will invest in digital assets using the pension fund because the state has already made investments in Bitcoin and crypto-related assets through this fund.

He explained that the fourth largest pension fund in the United States can utilize 1% of its fund to establish a Bitcoin reserve, providing the retirement savings scheme an opportunity to diversify and get exposure to the growing cryptocurrency market.

“The pension allocates its funds to hedge funds, and some of those hedge funds have bought various stocks in the Bitcoin space (miners, MSTR, Coinbase as examples) while also buying liquid tokens,” he added.

$800 Million In Crypto

Florida is not new in digital assets since it already has $800 million in crypto investments.

Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis urged other pension funds to try investing their money into Bitcoin, adding the firstborn cryptocurrency to their state’s investment portfolio.

“Crypto’s not going anywhere. It will continue expanding, and we’d be foolish not to harness its opportunities there,” Patronis said as he pointed out the need to prepare for the growth of digital currencies.

However, some critics voiced concerns about the state’s Bitcoin investment plans, warning about crypto’s volatility.

Charles Bobrinskoy of Ariel Investments argued that Bitcoin is a “momentum-driven bubble”, adding that it has an “unstable price” and does not have real value.

Meanwhile, state officials defended the move believing that Bitcoin is a “good long-term investment” and a better option to safeguard against traditional financial risks.

Featured image from Business Standard, chart from TradingView