[DigitalToday reporter Yoonseo Lee (이윤서)] A bill in the U.S. state of Arizona that would allow the state to stockpile cryptocurrencies obtained through seizures or voluntary surrender, rather than selling them, has moved to a full House vote.

The Crypto Basic, a blockchain outlet, reported on Tuesday that Arizona Senate Bill 1649 (SB1649) recently passed the House Rules Committee. All 8 lawmakers on the committee voted in favor, and the next step is a vote by the full House. The bill was submitted by sponsor Mark Finchem and previously passed the Senate Finance Committee by a 4-2-1 vote.

SB1649 would allow the state government to hold digital assets obtained through legal procedures such as seizures and voluntary surrender. Under current practice, authorities often dispose of such assets through auctions. If the bill passes, Arizona could keep them as a long-term strategic reserve.

The bill would also establish a Digital Assets Strategic Reserve Fund and specify that it be managed by the state treasurer. Assets added to the fund must meet a "cryptocurrency fair value standard" that reflects factors including adoption level, annual trading volume, total transaction value and ecosystem development.

XRP would be included among the reserve assets. The bill also names bitcoin as well as the NEAR Protocol, Nano (NANO) and Monero (XMR). The treasurer could operate fund holdings to generate returns, but investment activity would be subject to a condition that it must not increase the state's fiscal risk.

If it passes the full House, the bill would go to the governor for final review and a decision on whether to sign it. The Arizona legislature is also pushing Senate Bill 1042 (SB1042), which would allow up to 10 percent of public funds to be invested in cryptocurrencies.

The bill is significant in that it could open a path for state governments to hold seized or surrendered assets strategically instead of auctioning them. Depending on whether it ultimately passes, Arizona could become an example that leads discussions on public-sector digital asset stockpiles, and debate is also expected to intensify over the standards and scope for treating cryptocurrencies as fiscal assets.