Florida's CFO says state holds about $800 million in crypto investments

Quick Take

  • Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said the state holds about $800 million in “crypto-related” investments.
  • Earlier this week, Patronis said in a letter that Florida should direct “a portion of state retirement system monies into cryptocurrency.”

Florida's Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said Thursday during a televised interview with CNBC that the state holds about $800 million in "crypto-related" investments in its portfolio.

Patronis said he would not be surprised if the amount grew should former President Donald Trump be reelected next month. Earlier this week, Patronis said in a letter that Florida should direct "a portion of state retirement system monies into cryptocurrency."

Florida is not the first U.S. governmental body to invest in crypto-related financial instruments. Both the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Jersey City, New Jersey make up two other recent examples. In a May filing, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board said it owned $163 million in spot bitcoin ETFs.

Echoing Trump

Patronis also referenced Trump proposing the U.S. amass a stockpile of crypto, namely bitcoin.

"This comes as the Communist Party of China makes inroads every day into the crypto world to grab control over this emerging currency," Patronis wrote in his letter. "Trump said he would establish a crypto presidential advisory council and create a national "stockpile" of bitcoin using cryptocurrency the U.S. government currently hold."

In his CNBC interview, Patronis also said he believes Florida needs a hedge against the "massive overreach by the federal government with a centralized currency."


Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.

© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

About Author

RT Watson is a senior reporter at The Block who covers a wide array of topics including U.S.-based companies, blockchain gaming and NFTs. Formerly covered entertainment at The Wall Street Journal, where he wrote about Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros. and the creator economy while focusing primarily on technological disruption across media. Previous to that he covered corporate, economic and political news in Brazil while at Bloomberg. RT has interviewed a diverse cast of characters including CEOs, media moguls, top influencers, politicians, blue-collar workers, drug traffickers and convicted criminals. Holds a master's degree in Digital Sociology.

Editor

To contact the editor of this story:
Jason Shubnell at
[email protected]