- The National Bank of Switzerland could start holding BTC in its coffers if the lobby of a local Bitcoin group proves to be successful.
- The petitioner must gather at least 100,000 valid signatures from Swiss voters to pave the way for a referendum allowing the Swiss central bank to include the digital asset in its reserves.
The Push for the Swiss Central Bank’s Bitcoin Adoption
Several Bitcoin advocates in Switzerland have banded together to launch a new campaign for the broader adoption of BTC in the country, particularly by its central bank. This marks another attempt by the group to force a referendum after a similar attempt in October 2021 failed to produce such an outcome.
The group led by a certain 2B4Ch on X aims to gather at least a hundred thousand signatures from locals via a petition to amend Switzerland’s law. The initiative targets the insertion of “Bitcoin” in Article 99, Clause 3 of the Swiss Constitution.
The provision in question ensures that the Swiss central bank has enough monetary reserves. A part of these should be kept in gold.
It currently reads, “The Swiss National Bank shall create sufficient monetary reserves from its profits; part of these reserves shall be held in gold.”
The injection of “Bitcoin” in the clause would allow the National Bank of Switzerland to keep some of its reserves in the digital asset. Ultimately, this would help solidify the legitimacy of BTC and catalyze its wider acceptance amid the growing institutional demand it is experiencing nowadays.
Based on the Swiss direct democracy framework, the petitioner must gather at least 100,000 valid signatures within 18 months to trigger a referendum. Switzerland’s population was 8.76 million in 2022 with around 5.58 million registered voters in 2023. This means the people behind the campaign must convince at least 1.79% of Swiss voters to guarantee the passage of the proposed revision in the constitution.
Positive Sentiment for BTC
Bitcoin just concluded its fourth halving on April 20. This means a tighter supply for its coin going forward as the blockchain’s mining reward was slashed from the previous cycle’s 6.25 BTC per block to the present 3.125 BTC. This would also mean the reduction of the crypto asset’s average daily supply from 900 BTC to 450 BTC.
Historically, each halving event has resulted in new all-time highs (ATHs) for the largest cryptocurrency by market cap. The new epoch shouldn’t be any different, especially now that Bitcoin is enjoying an unprecedented level of acceptance from both retail and institutional investors.
The prospect of the National Bank of Switzerland including Bitcoin in its reserves could further help fuel BTC’s rally in the future.