Source: bitcoinist
Compiled by: Blockchain Knight
A cryoto-asset advocate group in Switzerland is urging the government to consider adding Bitcoin to national reserves.
The Swiss Federal Chancellery initiated the process to obtain the required number of signatures to push for an amendment to the country’s constitution to allow the Swiss National Bank to establish BTC holdings.
Ahead of its expiration in 2024, the Swiss Federal Chancellery has begun pushing for a proposal to include Crypto assets on the national balance sheet.
The state-run government agency said the proposal seeks to amend certain provisions of the Swiss Federal Constitution to allow the Swiss National Bank to purchase BTC as part of the European country’s national reserves.
After studying the prospect, the Swiss Federal Chancellery launched the Crypto Asset Initiative process, saying the proposal formally meets the legal requirements.
"The initiative complies with the conditions laid down in Article 69, paragraph 2, of the Federal Act on Political Rights of 17 December 1976. The aim is to create a financially sound, sovereign and responsible Switzerland," the government agency stated on its Fedlex website.
The initiative needs to collect around 100,000 signatures from the Swiss public to push for a constitutional amendment that would require the Swiss National Bank to hold BTC as part of the country’s monetary reserves alongside gold.
The Swiss Federal Chancellery aims to obtain the required number of signatures by June 30, 2026 to advance the proposal to amend Article 99, paragraph 3 of the country's federal constitution.
The initiative would add the following clause: Incorporate a "National Bank" into the Swiss Federal Constitution and use its own revenues to build up sufficient monetary reserves.
Part of the reserves consists of gold and BTC, giving the Swiss National Bank the power to purchase top digital assets as national reserves.
According to the report, to achieve a constitutional amendment, Crypto asset advocates must obtain the support of approximately 1.12% of the Swiss population, or 8.92 million citizens. Once this threshold is reached, the initiative will be submitted to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the bicameral parliament of Switzerland, for review.
The proposal was submitted by 10 Swiss Crypto asset advocates and aims to urge the Swiss government to adopt BTC in its national reserves.
These advocates include Giw Zanganeh, Tether’s vice president of energy and mining, and Yves Bennaïm, founder of 2B4CH.
However, the Swiss National Bank still maintains a conservative stance on Crypto assets, fearing the risks posed by central bank adoption of BTC.
Martin Schlegel, chairman of the Swiss National Bank’s board of directors, believes that BTC and other digital assets are still considered a “niche phenomenon,” adding that Crypto assets have limitations due to their volatility and association with illegal activities.
