Arizona Edges Toward Historic Bitcoin Reserve Approval

This will allow up to 10% of state funds to be invested in Bitcoin and digital assets. The state-level push also coincides with federal initiatives to create a national crypto reserve. Meanwhile, Michael Saylor’s Strategy expanded its Bitcoin holdings to 553,555 BTC, which is now valued at close to $50 billion. Analysts like Peter Chung of Presto are still very bullish about BTC, and predicted that Bitcoin could still hit $210,000 by the end of 2025, due to healthy market corrections, institutional growth, and Bitcoin’s role as both a high-risk asset and a digital safe haven.

Bitcoin Reserve Legislation Gains Momentum in Arizona

Lawmakers in the Arizona House of Representatives passed two bills that could enable the state to create a reserve fund using Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. During a third reading on April 28, Senate Bill 1025 (SB1025), which proposes amending Arizona’s statutes to allow for a strategic Bitcoin reserve, secured approval with 31 members voting in favor and 25 opposed. A separate but related bill, SB1373, which is aimed at establishing a broader state-level digital assets reserve, passed with a 37–19 vote.

Votes for SB 1025 (Source: Arizona State Legislature)

State Representative Jeff Weninger spoke on SB1025, and said that around 15 other states are considering similar legislation. He explained that the bill will initially allow, but not require, the state treasurer to invest up to 10% of Arizona’s funds into Bitcoin and other digital assets. He suggested that although uptake might be slow at first, having the legislative framework in place would prepare the state for a future increasingly centered on digital currencies.

The passage of these bills is the closest any US state has come to formally adopting a Bitcoin or cryptocurrency strategic reserve. Other states, like New Hampshire, are also advancing similar initiatives,  and a bill recently passed the New Hampshire House. It is now awaiting a Senate floor vote.

Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs previously indicated that she would veto any new bills until lawmakers secured a bipartisan funding agreement to support healthcare for Arizonans with disabilities. However, after the passage of such a funding package on April 24, there is now more potential for her to actually approve SB1025 or SB1373.

These state-level moves are taking place alongside a federal push to establish a national crypto reserve. In March, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order proposing the creation of a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve” and a “Digital Asset Stockpile.” Meanwhile, Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced legislation that will allow the federal government to hold more than one million BTC. This will be done by partly incorporating assets that were seized through civil or criminal forfeiture. 

Saylor’s Firm Strengthens Bitcoin Bet

US companies are also stuffing their coffers with Bitcoin. Michael Saylor’s firm Strategy recently expanded its already massive Bitcoin holdings with a major new purchase even as Bitcoin’s price surged past $90,000. 

In an announcement that was shared on April 28, Strategy revealed that it acquired 15,355 Bitcoin between April 21 and 27, and spent approximately $1.42 billion at an average price of $92,737 per BTC. This acquisition increased Strategy’s total Bitcoin holdings by about 3%, and brought the firm’s total stash to 535,555 BTC valued at over $50 billion.

Strategy BTC update (Source: Strategy)

This was also Strategy’s largest Bitcoin buy since late March, when the company purchased 22,048 BTC for $1.92 billion at an average price of $86,969 per coin. According to Saylor, the company’s Bitcoin yield stands at 13.7% year-to-date. 

In a post on X, Saylor stated that as of April 27, Strategy holds 553,555 BTC that was acquired for roughly $37.90 billion at an average price of $68,459 per Bitcoin. The Bitcoin yield, which reflects the percentage change in the ratio between BTC holdings and diluted shares, reached 74% in 2024. Strategy expects this figure to rise even more in 2025.

Strategy’s latest Bitcoin accumulation came during a strong bullish period for Bitcoin, with the cryptocurrency rising about 8% from around $87,000 to nearly $94,000 between April 21 and 27. At press time, Bitcoin was trading at $94,680, which means that it was maintaining gains above its Jan. 1 price but still below the all-time high.

As the company strengthened its Bitcoin position during the rally, Saylor continued to voice bullish sentiments on social media. On April 25, he reminded followers that they could still buy Bitcoin for under $100,000. Earlier in the week, he urged the community to “stay humble” and “stack sats,” linking the message to Strategy’s expanding Bitcoin timeline.

Meanwhile, Strategy’s aggressive Bitcoin strategy seems to be paying off nicely for shareholders as well, with the company’s market capitalization approaching $100 billion. Its stock, MSTR, climbed roughly 23% year-to-date.

Bitcoin’s Path to $210K Backed by Institutional Growth

Peter Chung, the head of research at quantitative trading firm Presto, recently reiterated his bullish prediction that Bitcoin will reach $210,000 by the end of 2025. In an April 28 interview with CNBC, Chung pointed to institutional adoption and global liquidity expansion as the main forces driving his outlook. 

He acknowledged that market conditions in 2025 have not matched earlier expectations, due to the challenging macroeconomic environment and mixed market reactions. However, he described the recent market corrections as a “healthy” development that strengthened Bitcoin’s foundation as a mainstream financial asset.

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Chung placed a lot of emphasis on Bitcoin’s dual identity, and called it both a “risk-on asset” influenced by user adoption and network effects, and a “digital gold” that serves as a safe haven during financial crises. He explained that Bitcoin acts as a high-risk asset most of the time but tends to behave more like gold during moments of instability, like the 2022 Russia-Ukraine conflict or the 2023 collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. 

According to Chung, although Bitcoin underperformed gold during the recent market turbulence, it still has the potential to catch up and even outperform traditional safe-haven assets before the end of 2025. He also reaffirmed Presto’s positive outlook on Ethereum, and still has confidence in the ETH-to-BTC valuation model due to Ethereum’s ongoing network improvements.

The broader market sentiment supports Chung’s view of increasing institutional interest in Bitcoin. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley recently pointed out that Bitcoin’s rise to $94,000 was fueled largely by institutions rather than retail investors, with Google search volumes for ”Bitcoin” remaining low. 

Horsley said that financial advisers, corporations, and even nation-states are now actively participating in Bitcoin investments. Corporate treasuries currently hold close to $65 billion worth of Bitcoin, according to BitcoinTreasuries.NET. Additional optimism came from analysts at Standard Chartered and Intellectia AI, who stated that growing institutional demand from ETFs and macroeconomic hedging strategies could more than double Bitcoin’s price in 2025.