Policymakers on New Hampshire’s executive council voted against a proposal that would have allowed the state to issue $100 million in bonds backed by Bitcoin (BTC).
In a hearing on Wednesday, the five-member panel voted 3-2 against the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority’s (BFA) proposal to issue $100 million in BTC-backed bonds. The proposed investments, which the authority approved in November 2025, already had the support of Governor Kelly Ayotte.
“It was an extremely short-sighted decision,” state Rep. Keith Ammon said in a Thursday X post after the vote. “I can’t believe I witnessed it in person. They should gather all the relevant facts and information and reconsider their vote at a future meeting.”
Council members Karen Liot Hill, Dave Wheeler and Janet Stevens voted against the measure, while Joseph Kenney and John Stephen approved it. The cryptocurrency investment vehicles, issued by the BFA and with CleanSpark offering BTC as collateral, would have marked New Hampshire’s continued approval of digital asset policies, following its May 2025 cryptocurrency reserve law.
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While BTC-backed bonds were supported by many in the cryptocurrency industry, some experts warned against the proposal, saying it carried “substantial risk” to New Hampshire residents. Moody’s assigned the Bitcoin bond a provisional rating of Ba2 in March.
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With gaming authorities in many US states already filing lawsuits against prediction market platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket over sports betting, some have speculated that New Hampshire could join the legal fight by challenging the authority of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). State Sen. Tim Lang was reportedly planning to introduce legislation restricting prediction markets in New Hampshire in April, but as of Friday the platforms were still active in the state.
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