Wyoming plans to launch its very own crypto in July

Wyoming says it will launch its own cryptocurrency by July, becoming the first state in the U.S. to issue a fiat-backed, fully-reserved stablecoin.

The coin, named WYST, will be backed by cash, U.S. Treasuries, and repurchase agreements, and is required by law to maintain at least 102% in reserves. The information was reported during the DC Blockchain Summit, according to Bloomberg.

Governor Mark Gordon said banks have dragged their feet when it comes to launching stablecoins. “I don’t think there’s any banks that have been really eager, right? To jump in,” Mark said at the summit. He also recalled a past conversation with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, saying, “If you’re gonna do something, you should really do it in Wyoming, because we have a framework to do it.”

The coin is designed to bring new revenue to the state. Wyoming plans to use interest earned from the reserves to fund education and infrastructure. Mark said the token could also help people in agriculture. “It can also be a tool that farmers and ranchers can use to develop new markets,” he said.

State sees WYST as a way to pull in new money

WYST will be pegged to the U.S. dollar and structured to function like other stablecoins, which aim to hold a 1:1 value with the dollar. Interest in stablecoins is already growing across the U.S. Companies like Visa, PayPal, and Stripe are investing in projects tied to these coins or building their own. Lawmakers in Texas and Utah have also looked into issuing similar state-backed tokens, but none have moved as fast as Wyoming.

The state has spent nearly a decade preparing for this. Since 2016, Wyoming has passed over 45 crypto-focused laws, trying to become less reliant on money from fossil fuels. More than 1,000 LLCs using names with “crypto,” “blockchain,” or “DAO” are now registered in the state, based on filings with the Secretary of State’s office.

Still, the results have been mixed. In 2023, Wyoming invested $2 million into crypto-related projects but only got back $473,000, Bloomberg reported. On top of that, lawmakers in the state rejected a proposal earlier this year to create state crypto reserves, with opponents citing crypto’s high risk and unstable value.

Senator Cynthia Lummis, who represents Wyoming in the Senate, pitched the idea of a national Bitcoin stockpile last year at a conference in Nashville. Cynthia’s plan would have the U.S. government buy 1 million Bitcoin, which is way more than the 200,000 BTC the country currently holds from previous seizures. But even her home state refused to support a bill that would let the state invest directly in Bitcoin. The proposal failed in the Wyoming House in February, getting just one vote in favor.

WYST could live on Solana, Ethereum, or Polygon

Anthony Apollo, who runs the Wyoming Stable Tokens Commission, said the state is reviewing nine blockchains that could support WYST. Options on the table include Solana, Ethereum, and Polygon, but no decision has been made yet. Anthony said, “We also believe that the framework we’ve built over the last several years is one that’s probably richer and more robust than just the one in Washington.”

While Wyoming moves forward, other states are pulling back. In the past two months alone, lawmakers in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming have all voted against creating crypto reserves. These bills would have let states hold assets like Bitcoin as part of their long-term financial planning.

Jennifer Schulp, who works at the Cato Institute, said the hesitation isn’t surprising. “There’s a well-deserved perception of volatility in terms of Bitcoin and all crypto,” Jennifer said. “I think that’s going to continue to be an issue even as the crypto environment continues to be a positive one.”

Crypto reserve proposals have popped up in 24 states so far, but most haven’t gone anywhere. Lawmakers say they don’t want to put taxpayer money into something that can swing wildly in value. In South Dakota, a bill to invest up to 10% of state funds into Bitcoin was postponed after a vote in the House of Representatives. Montana’s version failed with a 41-59 vote in the House.

Bitcoin’s price drop hasn’t helped. After peaking at around $109,000 in January just hours before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, it’s fallen nearly 20%. That kind of dip gives lawmakers even more reasons to say no. Most state reserves are held in low-risk bonds, not coins that can lose billions in value overnight.

Trump signed an executive order on crypto in January, asking for a study on whether a digital asset reserve is even doable. The order didn’t promise anything. It just told the government to look into it and come back with answers. Jennifer said that even with Trump back in office and openly pro-crypto, the White House is still being cautious. “It makes sense that if on a national level, an administration that is very pro-crypto is taking some time to consider a strategic Bitcoin reserve, states would also be doing the same thing and not jumping in with two feet,” she said.

Other states experiment while Wyoming locks in

Trump’s DeFi project, World Liberty Financial, is already testing the idea of a strategic crypto reserve. Chase Herro, who co-founded the project, said the platform plans to buy crypto tokens and use them to build up reserves without any help from the federal government.

In Ohio, lawmakers have introduced bills in both the House and Senate that would create state-held Bitcoin reserves. The state is still debating both proposals. Andrew Burchill, who runs the Ohio Blockchain Council, said Bitcoin isn’t as scary as lawmakers think. “From our measure, Bitcoin has been the best performing asset over the last decade compared to any traditional investment,” Andrew said. “If we’re thinking long term, the volatility is less of a risk.”

Oklahoma is moving too. Last month, the state’s Government Oversight Committee passed a bill that would start building a Bitcoin reserve. But that doesn’t mean it’ll happen. Just like in other states, lawmakers are still arguing about whether public money should be used to buy crypto at all.

Jennifer said the arguments are far from over. “I think this does raise a lot of questions in terms of whether or not the policy is a good one and what the implementation of that policy would even look like,” she said. “And those questions become even more complex when states all have their own rules about budgeting and investing.”

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