New Hampshire has made US history by approving the country’s first municipal bond backed entirely by Bitcoin. The bond is worth one hundred million dollars and is designed to connect digital assets with the traditional debt market. This move puts the state at the front of innovation and could guide how governments and big companies handle crypto in the future.
New Hampshire has supported crypto for almost ten years. The state has even explored letting people pay taxes in Bitcoin. Now the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority has given the green light for a one hundred million dollar bond for a company called WaveRose Depositor. Instead of being supported by taxpayer money this bond is backed only by Bitcoin. The Bitcoin will be safely held by BitGo so the public takes on no risk.
To take this loan the borrower must post Bitcoin worth about one hundred sixty percent of the bond’s value. If Bitcoin’s price drops too much the system automatically sells some of the collateral when it falls near one hundred thirty percent. This structure lets businesses borrow money without having to sell their Bitcoin which means no taxable events are created. Everything is set up to follow traditional rules so the bond remains fully compliant with financial regulations.
Wave Digital Assets and Rosemawr Management helped design the bond and Orrick made sure the legal structure fits within US rules. Experts say this could be the first step toward bringing Bitcoin and other digital assets into the huge global debt market which is worth more than one hundred forty trillion dollars. Big investors like pension funds may eventually use bonds like this to get regulated exposure to crypto.
State leaders say this is a controlled test to see how Bitcoin works as collateral in the bond market. The built in safety rules such as extra collateral and automatic liquidation help reduce risk while still keeping everything within normal municipal finance standards.
This new bond comes after New Hampshire created its Strategic Bitcoin Reserve earlier this year. That law made the state the first in the US to allow government money to be invested in Bitcoin or large digital assets. The treasury can put up to five percent of its funds into these assets either directly or through ETFs.
The Bitcoin backed bond works alongside this reserve. It lets the public sector and private companies collaborate while treating Bitcoin as high quality collateral. Any fees and any gains made from the Bitcoin supporting the bond will go into the state’s Bitcoin Economic Development Fund. This fund is designed to support new ideas business growth and broader economic development. It shows that New Hampshire is trying to bring digital finance into the real economy in a thoughtful and structured way.