Finance News

Story: New Hampshire Plans $100 Million Bitcoin Bond Launch

By Bruce Buterin

1 / 15

BitGo Takes Control. BitGo's role isn't small potatoes. They're managing and liquidating bitcoin holdings to cover…

2 / 15

Regulatory Hurdles Remain. The bond still needs final regulatory approval, and the New Hampshire Bond Authority expects to…

3 / 15

New Hampshire wants Bitcoin bonds. The state's Bond Authority just announced plans for a $100 million bitcoin-backed security that'll hit markets in early May, and frankly, it's…

4 / 15

Moody's slapped a speculative-grade rating on the thing, which basically means they think it's risky as hell.

5 / 15

BitGo's role isn't small potatoes. They're managing and liquidating bitcoin holdings to cover interest and principal payments, which sounds straightforward until you remember…

6 / 15

The company's handled similar gigs before with other digital asset-backed securities. That track record matters when you're dealing with state money and investor cash.

7 / 15

But the speculative-grade rating from Moody's tells the real story here. A Moody's rep said on March 30 that while the bond carries higher risk, it's also "a novel approach to…

8 / 15

Stevens and his team haven't disclosed interest rates or specific bond terms yet, which leaves potential investors guessing about what they'll actually get.

9 / 15

The state's pushing this as part of a broader strategy to integrate cryptocurrencies into New Hampshire's financial infrastructure.

10 / 15

Investor interest seems decent so far. The authority's been talking to regional banks since late March, trying to get them to offer the bond through their networks.

11 / 15

The authority's scheduling a press conference for April 15 to answer questions and provide more details about the bond's structure.

12 / 15

Conservative investors probably won't touch this thing. But for those with higher risk appetites, a state-backed bitcoin bond might be exactly what they're looking for.

13 / 15

Market watchers are keeping close tabs on how this plays out. If New Hampshire pulls it off successfully, other states might follow with their own crypto-backed securities.

14 / 15

The authority hasn't released projections on how much demand they expect, which probably means they don't really know either.

15 / 15

BitGo's got $100 million worth of Bitcoin to manage starting in May.

The Currency Analytics

Want the full story?