As Bitcoin regains momentum with investors, Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is imploring state leaders to consider cryptocurrency as a potential component of Florida’s state retirement system.
Last week, Patronis asked the State Board of Administration (SBA) for a report on the feasibility, risk, and potential benefits of direction a portion of state retirement system monies into cryptocurrency.
“I am a firm believer in the fact that Florida is in its prime, with a Triple A bond rating for the fifth year in a row, record reserves, and we are outpacing the country in nearly every economic metric,” Patronis said in a news release. “Cryptocurrency is just another avenue for Florida to lean forward and lead the way. It is essential that we as a State stay ahead of the curve when considering new investments and providing the best returns for Floridians.”
During an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Patronis explained the reasoning behind his push for crypto.
“I’m going to continue to push forward to make sure that we’re doing everything possible to take advantage of this. It’s not emerging, it’s here,” Patronis said. “I need to make sure that we’re doing everything humanly possible to get [state employees] the best return on their investment. We saw a surge of of cryptocurrency interest and
activity as we had 2020 in MiamI. I think that one point you’re going
to see Miami is the crypto capital of the world.”
Patronis also indicated he’d been inspired by former President Donald Trump‘s rhetoric earlier this year at a prominent Bitcoin conference in Nashville, where the former president spoke of a strategic crypto reserve for the U.S.
“In Florida we have about $800 million in crypto related investments in our state
portfolio, but I would not be shocked if you to see that growing under a Trump
Administration in the near future,” Patronis said.
If Florida were to add cryptocurrency to its state retirement plan, it would follow in the footsteps of states such as Wisconsin and Michigan.
