Haciyev Reşit 
Texas has made history by becoming the first U.S. state to purchase Bitcoin for its state treasury. Under the newly established Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, the state made its first official acquisition on November 20. The initial purchase was conducted through BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, and was completed at a price level of roughly $87,000. This acquisition follows the legal process in which Texas formally recognized digital assets as a state reserve option.
First Purchase Made Through IBIT
Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council, announced that the state’s first Bitcoin purchase was executed through BlackRock’s IBIT ETF. This method allowed Texas to operate within a compliant and easily implementable framework during the initial phase. According to officials, the state plans to eventually secure its Bitcoin holdings using a self-custody model.
According to Bratcher’s statements, the first transaction amounted to $5 million. Texas has allocated a total budget of $10 million for the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve—though not all of these funds have been deployed yet. Therefore, the $5 million IBIT purchase marks both the first step of the reserve and the first-ever Bitcoin investment made by a U.S. state government.
Texas Bitcoin Reserve Law and SB 21
This purchase was made possible under SB 21, a bill signed in June by Governor Greg Abbott. The legislation authorizes the creation of a state-managed Bitcoin reserve in Texas and delegates its administration to the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company.
Senator Charles Schwertner, one of the legislative supporters of SB 21, had emphasized that the state “should have the opportunity to benefit from Bitcoin, one of the best-performing assets of the past decade.” This approach underscores Texas’s growing inclination to view Bitcoin as a long-term reserve asset.
A New Era for Digital Asset Policy in Public Institutions
Texas’s Bitcoin purchase marks an important milestone for U.S. public institutions considering crypto assets as part of their strategic reserves. This development is interpreted as the beginning of a broader shift in public treasury management practices.
Additionally, the formal recognition of Bitcoin as a reserve asset indicates that policymakers are adopting an increasingly positive stance toward digital assets. The decision to conduct the first purchase via IBIT reflects a compliant, secure, and regulated approach at the early stage of the reserve program.
Texas Treasury Portfolio and the Role of IBIT
According to the latest reports from the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, the portfolio includes:
- Approximately $667 million in SPY
- Approximately $34 million in Janus Henderson funds
If Bratcher’s statements hold true, the $5 million IBIT purchase will become the third asset category listed in the treasury’s portfolio.
Despite being less than two years old, IBIT has quickly become one of the most preferred Bitcoin ETFs among U.S. institutions. Harvard holding nearly 7 million IBIT shares as of September 30 and Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund increasing its IBIT exposure are strong indicators of the ETF’s rising global acceptance.
Overall Assessment
Texas’s Bitcoin purchase is viewed as a historic step not only for the state’s own crypto asset strategy but also for public-sector adoption of digital assets in the U.S. With this acquisition, Texas has become the first government entity to formally treat Bitcoin as a long-term reserve asset. This move could set a precedent for other states and public institutions, potentially accelerating institutional-level Bitcoin adoption across the country in the long run.
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