Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis has proposed that the state agency responsible for managing retirement funds consider investing in Bitcoin.
In a letter of October 29, 2024Patronis described Bitcoin as “digital gold,” suggesting it could improve portfolio diversification and serve as a hedge against the volatility associated with traditional asset classes.
Patronis urged the Florida State Board of Regents (SBA) to prepare a report evaluating the feasibility, risks and potential benefits of allocating a portion of the state’s retirement funds to digital assets before the start of the next legislative session on March 4, 2025.
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SBA funds boast $205 billion in assets
The SBA Currently oversees more than 30 funds, including the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund, which had approximately $205 billion in assets as of September 30.
In his correspondence, Patronis proposed establishing a “digital currency investment pilot program” within the Florida Growth Fund.
The fund can invest up to 1.5% of the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund and recently allocated approximately $998 million to high-growth investments between 2022 and 2023, as outlined in a report earlier this year.
“When managing state pensions for firefighters, teachers and police officers, it is critical to prioritize returns and ensure the best investment outcomes for Floridians. This is where the appeal of investing in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin becomes particularly compelling,” Patronis said.
He also highlighted that this initiative would complement Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ recent stance against central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), presenting Bitcoin as the “antithesis” of centralized monetary systems.
If Florida moves forward with cryptocurrency investments, it would be join the ranks of states like Wisconsin and Michigan.
In May, the Wisconsin Investment Board disclosed a $164 million investment in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from Grayscale and BlackRock, representing about 0.1% of its total assets.
Similarly, in July, the Michigan Retirement System reported holding 110,000 shares of the ARK 21Shares ETF, or 0.003% of its assets.
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Jersey City Municipal Pension Fund to Invest in Bitcoin ETFs
Earlier this year, the Jersey City Municipal Pension Fund announced plans to invest in Bitcoin through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The city’s pension fund, the Employees Retirement System of Jersey City, has followed regulatory steps.
Although the specific ETF was not named, Mayor Steven Fulop indicated that Jersey City’s strategy could follow a similar approach to that of the Wisconsin State Pension Fund, which recently invested 2% of its assets in Bitcoin ETFs.
This isn’t my usual topic in an article, but I’ll share it anyway – the question of whether Crypto/Bitcoin is here to stay is largely over + crypto/Bitcoin won. THE #JerseyCity the pension fund is in the process of updating filings with the SEC to allocate % of the fund to Bitcoin ETFs…
–Steven Fulop (@StevenFulop) July 25, 2024
There has notably been a trend of public pension funds becoming interested in cryptocurrencies, with notable examples such as the Wisconsin State of Wisconsin Investment Board making a substantial $160 million investment in spot bitcoin ETFs earlier this year.
While larger entities like the Government of Japan Pension Investment Fund have also explored the bitcoin investment space, smaller funds like the Houston Firefighters’ Relief and Retirement Fund have maintained their exposure to the cryptography for several years.
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