Lawmakers in Arizona are considering a bill that would let the state hold digital assets in reserve instead of selling them, and XRP is among the names on the list.
The proposal would place these assets under the control of the state treasury, and it could also let the state earn additional returns through staking, airdrops or limited lending if the move does not entail financial risk.
What the fund would contain
SB1649 creates a Digital Assets Strategic Reserve Fund consisting of digital assets held by, confiscated by, or transferred to Arizona.
The legal text also states that the treasurer can deposit state-owned digital assets through a secure custody solution or an approved exchange-traded product, and then manage the fund directly.
It defines “digital assets” broadly enough to include Bitcoin, XRPstablecoins, non-fungible tokens, Dash, internet computer, Ravencoin, Chia, eCash, Moneyand other digital assets that meet the bill’s fair value test.
That fair value test is built around adoption, annual transactions, annual transaction value and development activity. In clear terms, the bill seeks to sort assets by market use and technical strength before they can be treated as reserve assets.
The wording is broad, but it’s not an open-ended invitation to purchase. It first establishes a screening standard.
A bill that keeps moving
The unit of measurement has already cleared the House Rules Committee and is headed to a vote in the full House. The Arizona legislation shows the committee approved it 8-0 on March 30, after earlier Senate action sent it through the chamber. This means that the bill is still alive, but is not yet law.
The step in the House of Representatives is important because it brings the proposal closer to the finish line. The bill would give the treasurer the authority to administer the fund, and would also allow digital assets reported as abandoned property to be delivered in native form to the state or its custodian.
If these assets go unclaimed for long enough, strike rewards and airdrops can be shifted to the reserve fund.
Why XRP is in the mix
XRP has attracted additional attention because it is directly mentioned in the bill and not implied through a broad crypto category. In the same section that mentions Bitcoin, XRP is also mentioned alongside several other assets that could qualify under the reserve framework.
Featured image from Meta, chart from TradingView