- Brazil debates PL 01/2025 to create RESBit, allocating up to 5% reserves, around $17 billion, via legislation today.
- Proposal separates RESBit from international reserves, funds with seized BTC, Treasury-managed, cold wallets, technical committee oversight, semiannual audits.
Brazil opened a public hearing on PL 01/2025, a bill to create a Sovereign and Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (RESBit). The proposal would allow allocations of up to 5% of national reserves—around USD 17 billion—subject to congressional approval. Lawmakers outlined a structure that separates RESBit from Brazil’s international reserves and places management under the National Treasury.
After the August 20 session at the Chamber of Deputies’ Economic Development Committee, the text moves to additional reviews in Science and Innovation, Finance and Taxation, and Constitution and Justice.
A technical committee with representatives from the Central Bank and the Finance Ministry would oversee cold-wallet custody and semiannual audits. The bill also contemplates funding RESBit with seized BTC to avoid budget outlays.
Supporters cite growing domestic adoption. According to ETHNews, more than 25 million Brazilians invest in digital assets. Diego Kolling, from Méliuz, compared Bitcoin’s strategic role to an invention adopted under necessity, and argued that waiting increases entry costs due to BTC’s fixed 21 million supply. Meanwhile, advocates warn that international funds and governments could accumulate faster, leaving Brazil to buy later at higher prices.
However, officials raised caution. Finance Ministry representative Daniel Leal argued that BTC’s volatility demands far more fiscal effort than stable assets. Moreover, Central Bank voices noted the IMF’s classification of bitcoin as a non-financial asset, which does not fit traditional reserve mandates. Therefore, several legislators endorsed a sovereign fund format—outside formal reserves—to contain risk while testing use cases.
Additionally, the draft establishes governance around transparency: cold storage, clear reporting lines, and periodic audits. Consequently, the debate shifted from ideology to mechanics—what to buy, how to hold, and when to rebalance. Yet the core question persists: should Brazil treat bitcoin as a strategic holding akin to a commodity reserve?
For now, RESBit advances through committees. If the bill reaches the floor and passes both chambers, implementation would hinge on custody readiness, audit procedures, and market liquidity at the time of purchase.
