Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies has scheduled a public hearing for August 20, 2025, to discuss a bill that would allow the federal government to allocate up to 5% of its foreign reserves into Bitcoin. If approved, the initiative could result in the creation of a national Strategic Bitcoin Reserve worth approximately $17 billion.
Details of the Proposal
The legislation under discussion, Bill 4501/2024, was introduced in November 2024 by Deputy Eros Biondini and is currently being evaluated by the Economic Development Commission. The bill proposes the creation of a sovereign Bitcoin reserve – referred to as RESBit – as a means of protecting Brazil’s international reserves from foreign exchange volatility and geopolitical risks.
The hearing was requested by Deputy Luiz Philippe de Orleans e Bragança, who has been an active supporter of the proposal. According to Brazil’s latest data, the country holds around $343 billion in foreign reserves. A 5% allocation to Bitcoin would represent a purchase of roughly $17 billion worth of the asset.
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Participants and Oversight
At least six institutions are expected to take part in the public hearing, including the Central Bank of Brazil, the Ministry of Finance, crypto industry representatives, and traditional financial institutions. The event is intended to provide a platform for both supporters and critics of the bill to present their assessments.
Under the bill, responsibility for custody, risk management, and periodic reporting would be jointly assigned to the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance. The reserve would be held using cold storage infrastructure aligned with international standards, and its size would be capped at 5% of the total foreign exchange reserve holdings.
Mixed Reactions from Officials
Government officials and financial regulators have expressed a range of views on the proposal. Pedro Giocondo Guerra, chief of staff to Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, has publicly supported the initiative, calling Bitcoin “digital gold” and describing the debate as relevant to Brazil’s long-term economic policy.
On the other hand, Nilton David, Director of Monetary Policy at the Central Bank of Brazil, stated that the inclusion of cryptoassets in the country’s reserves may not be appropriate.
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Next Steps in the Legislative Process
Following the public hearing, the bill will return to the Economic Development Commission for further evaluation. If approved at the commission level, it will proceed to a vote in the full Chamber of Deputies. From there, it would need to be passed by the Senate before being submitted for presidential approval or veto.
The proposal comes at a time when other countries, including the United States and Kazakhstan, are also exploring the idea of national Bitcoin reserves. If implemented, Brazil would become one of the largest sovereign holders of Bitcoin globally, potentially placing it alongside or ahead of countries such as El Salvador and the United Kingdom.
