Texas Bitcoin Reserve to Shift From ETF to BTC Custody

The mandate covers secure custody of digital assets in the name of the State of Texas, liquidity services to facilitate purchases and sales, and a transition plan that would shift existing IBIT holdings into directly custodied Bitcoin within 60 days of contract execution.

The RFP goes beyond basic safekeeping, requiring institutional-grade security controls, standard and custom reporting, and a dedicated public website showing how much Bitcoin and other qualifying cryptocurrencies the reserve holds and what they are worth.

Texas Comptroller names strategic Bitcoin reserve committee members

The request for proposals was highlighted in a statement from Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock announcing the members of the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee.

The panel includes veteran investment executive Laurie Dotter, Cormint Data Systems founder and CEO Jamie McAvity, Southern Methodist University law professor and digital asset scholar Carla Reyes, and CleanSpark president and chief financial officer Gary Vecchiarelli.

The committee is tasked with advising on how the reserve is run, including custody arrangements, risk management and how the state discloses its holdings and performance to lawmakers and the public, as well as broader governance of the reserves investment strategy.

Supporters of the law that created the reserve have pitched Bitcoin, and potentially other large-cap cryptocurrencies, as a strategic asset that can help hedge against inflation and economic volatility over time.