Texas Creates Five-Member Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee

Following a successful effort to advance its state-backed Bitcoin plan, Texas has initiated another move. Authorities have appointed five people to advise the recently established Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.

The appointments were announced by acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock on Friday. He said the group will provide guidance on managing the reserve, including valuation and custody requirements of digital assets that are part of the state's Bitcoin reserves. In addition, they will help develop related risk controls.

"The Legislature gave the Comptroller's office a clear responsibility to administer the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, and that work must be done with transparency, security and strong financial controls," Hancock said. He added that the committee's job will be to make sure that the reserve is tackled "carefully, responsibly and in the best interest of Texas taxpayers."

For context, the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve was created by Senate Bill 21 in the 89th Texas Legislature. The committee is composed of Hancock and four industry and financial professionals, including Bitcoin miners and experts in commercial law, institutional investing and corporate finance.

The Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve committee appointees are:

Laurie Dotter, a long-time investment executive who currently serves as chair of the Investment Advisory Board of the Employees Retirement System of Texas. Dotter also has served on the Comptroller's Investment Advisory Board.

Jamie McAvity, a Bitcoin mining executive, was also picked for the panel. McAvity is the founder and CEO of Cormint Data Systems, a Texas mining company with a 130-megawatt plant in Fort Stockton.

SMU law professor Carla Reyes also was involved. Reyes is widely recognized for her research in the areas of blockchain regulation, commercial law and emerging technologies. She is also a member of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Innovation Advisory Committee.

Gary Vecchiarelli is the fourth appointee and President and CFO of Bitcoin miner CleanSpark. Vecchiarelli assisted in the creation of the digital asset management framework for the company's institutional clients.

Further, the Comptroller's office released a request for proposal seeking a qualified firm to provide management and custody services for the state's BTC holdings. The deadline for submissions is June 13.