Montana's House Business and Labor Committee has approved a bill that would allow the state to invest in Bitcoin and other assets as part of its financial reserves.

On February 19th, the committee voted 12-8 in favor of House Bill No. 429. 


The proposed legislation seeks to establish a special revenue account that could hold investments in precious metals, Bitcoin, stablecoins, and digital assets with an average market capitalization exceeding $750 billion over the past year.

At present, Bitcoin is the only digital asset that meets this criterion.

Montana is now the fourth state to move a Bitcoin reserve bill to the House, following Utah, Arizona, and Oklahoma. 

The latest version of the bill excludes a previous requirement that funds be held by a qualified custodian or through an exchange-traded fund.

If passed, the legislation would take effect on July 1st, granting the state treasurer the authority to allocate up to $50 million to the newly established reserve account by July 15th.

Several other states, including Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Texas, have introduced similar proposals, though none have progressed beyond initial legislative stages. 

To date, Utah is the only state where a Bitcoin reserve bill has passed through the House.

Dennis Porter, CEO of the Satoshi Action Fund, has suggested that Utah may be the first to implement a Bitcoin reserve due to its legislative calendar and political momentum.

At the federal level, U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis continues to advocate for Bitcoin reserve legislation on a national scale.

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