Philippine lawmaker seeks to build 10,000‑BTC national reserve
A bill filed in the Philippine House would direct the country’s central bank to create a national strategic Bitcoin reserve by buying up to 2,000 BTC a year for five years, building a stockpile of 10,000 Bitcoin (roughly the scale of a small‑country treasury allocation). The proposal, submitted by Rep. Miguel Luis “Migz” Villafuerte as House Bill 421, frames the plan as a way to diversify state assets and bolster financial resilience.
Under the draft law the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) would place acquired coins in trust and keep them largely off the market: holdings would be locked for a minimum of 20 years, with sales tightly restricted (sales would generally be allowed only to retire government debt). The bill also pushes for strong oversight and transparency — including custody safeguards, geographically dispersed cold storage, and public reporting — so the central bank must publish details about holdings and key controls.
The proposal situates the Philippines alongside a small group of governments already connected to sovereign Bitcoin strategies. If carried out, the 10,000‑BTC plan would put the Philippines ahead of countries like El Salvador (which publicly holds roughly 6,000+ BTC) and near nations that report larger on‑chain government positions identified by analytics firms. Proponents cite those examples as part of a broader trend of states and public entities experimenting with digital‑asset allocations.
Supporters in Congress describe Bitcoin as a long‑term store of value — “digital gold” — and argue that a locked reserve could help shield the nation’s balance sheet from currency shocks and concentrated dollar exposure. Critics, however, are likely to raise concerns about price volatility, funding sources for purchases, custody risk, and the macroeconomic implications of placing large amounts of national wealth into a single digital asset.
Legislative next steps remain: the bill has been filed and public discussion has begun, but any mandate for the BSP would need to clear committee review and further parliamentary procedures before becoming law. Observers say the measure, whether passed or not, signals growing interest in how sovereigns might integrate cryptocurrencies into official reserve strategies.
