Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis wants the agency that manages the state’s retirement funds to consider investing in Bitcoin — joining a growing number of American states adding crypto to their portfolios.&nbsp;
“Bitcoin (<a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/bitcoin-price" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" text="null" title="https://cointelegraph.com/bitcoin-price">BTC</a>) is often called ‘digital gold,’ and it could help diversify the state’s portfolio and provide a secure hedge against the volatility of other major asset classes,” <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://myfloridacfo.com/docs-sf/cfo-news-libraries/news-documents/2024/cfo-sba-letter.pdf?sfvrsn=cf808a4e_1" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">wrote</a> Patronis in an Oct. 29 letter to the Florida State Board of Administration’s executive director, Chris Spencer.&nbsp;
Patronis’ letter urges the SBA to “provide a report on the feasibility, risk and potential benefits of directing a portion of state retirement system monies into digital asset classes” and to do so before the next legislation session, scheduled for March 4, 2025.&nbsp;
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 Source: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://x.com/JimmyPatronis/status/1851351305912270934" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Jimmy Patronis </a>
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Florida’s SBA manages over 30 funds, including the Florida Retirement System Trust Fund — which has about $205 billion in assets under management as of Sept. 30.&nbsp;
In his letter, Patronis suggested that the SBA could create a “Digital Currency Investment Pilot Program” as part of the Florida Growth Fund.&nbsp;
This fund is allowed to use up to 1.5% of the Florida <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/bitcoin-etfs-for-retirement-planning" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Retirement</a> System Trust Fund and has <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://oppaga.fl.gov/Documents/Reports/24-01.pdf" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">invested</a> $998 million into high-growth investments between 2022 and 2023, according to a report in January.&nbsp;
“When managing state pensions for firefighters, teachers, and police officers, it’s also essential to prioritize the bottom line and ensure the best return on investment for Floridians. This is where the potential of investing in a cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin, becomes particularly compelling,” added Patronis.&nbsp;
Related: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/florida-friendliest-us-state-crypto-taxation" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Florida crypto tax friendliest among all US states</a>
The executive also said that the move would align with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ recent effort to block <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/what-are-cbdcs-a-beginners-guide-to-central-bank-digital-currencies" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">central bank digital currencies</a> (CBDCs), noting that crypto is the “antithesis” of central currency.
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 <img alt="Florida official wants Bitcoin included in state pension funds" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-10/0192db7c-d20e-7e4d-8ae3-e7c1d69383f2" title="">
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 Jimmy Patronis requests the SBA produce a report about the potential of investing in Bitcoin. Source: Florida CFO
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If Florida decides to invest in crypto, it would join states like Wisconsin and Michigan, which have added crypto assets to their respective state retirement funds.&nbsp;
In May, The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) reported it had <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/wisconsin-investments-spot-bitcoin-etf" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">invested $164 million</a> in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offered by Grayscale and BlackRock, with the crypto play amounting to about 0.1% of its total assets under management.&nbsp;
Months later, in July, the State of Michigan Retirement System <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/michigan-pension-fund-bitcoin-etfs" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">also disclosed investments in Bitcoin</a>, with 110,000 shares in ARK 21Shares’ ETF, at 0.003% of its assets under management.&nbsp;
Magazine: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/solana-champion-mert-mumtaz-fud-sol-most-helius/" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">The rise of Mert Mumtaz: ‘I probably FUD Solana the most out of anybody’</a>

Florida official wants Bitcoin included in state pension funds

Cointelegraph

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