This move triggered backlash from Bitcoin advocates and lawmakers. The Arizona Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act would have used seized assets for crypto investments, but Hobbs rejected it. Critics like Jameson Lopp, Anthony Pompliano, and Senator Wendy Rogers slammed the move. Meanwhile, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes doubts the US will expand its Bitcoin reserves due to fiscal constraints and political optics. In contrast, Strategy continues its aggressive accumulation, and recently bought over 15,000 BTC. Founder Michael Saylor signaled even more purchases despite mixed quarterly results. Arizona Shuts Down Bitcoin Reserve Plan Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs attracted some criticism from Bitcoin advocates and government officials after vetoing a bill that would have allowed the state to invest in Bitcoin as part of its official reserves. The vetoed legislation, which is known as the Arizona Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, would have permitted state officials to manage a Bitcoin reserve funded by seized assets. The decision caused a lot of backlash on social media. Casa co-founder Jameson Lopp predicted that the move “will age poorly,” and entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano accused Hobbs of lacking the foresight to invest in Bitcoin, calling the veto “ignorant.” Crypto lawyer Andrew Gordon and Arizona State Senator Wendy Rogers , who co-sponsored the bill with State Representative Jeff Weninger, also expressed their disappointment. Rogers argued that Arizona needs Bitcoin more than Bitcoin needs Arizona and pointed out the irony that the state retirement system already holds shares in Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR), which she called “basically a leveraged Bitcoin ETF.” Despite the setback, Rogers pledged to reintroduce the bill in the next legislative session. Governor Hobbs defended her decision by citing the sound and informed investment strategies of the Arizona State Retirement System, which she praised as one of the strongest in the country. On the opposing end, long-time Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff supported Hobbs, and stated that government entities should not use public funds to speculate on cryptocurrencies. Had it passed, Arizona would have been the first US state to officially create a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve. So far, similar proposals were also shut down in states like Oklahoma, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming. Arthur Hayes Doubts US Bitcoin Expansion While some US states are moving away from Bitcoin, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes also believes the United States is unlikely to expand its Bitcoin reserves beyond the roughly 200,000 BTC it already seized, due to the country’s ballooning deficit and the perception of Bitcoin culture. In a May 1 interview , Hayes dismissed the idea of a formal US strategic Bitcoin reserve, and argued that no “properly elected” official would openly endorse printing money to buy Bitcoin, especially given the association with “Bitcoin bros going to the club.” His comments were made despite President Donald Trump’s executive order on March 6 to establish a strategic Bitcoin and digital asset reserve, Current US government holdings are valued at over $18 billion, primarily sourced from assets confiscated in criminal cases like the Silk Road and Bitfinex hacks. Hayes’ skepticism is very different from the views of other crypto industry leaders who believe a US move to buy Bitcoin could trigger a global scramble for the digital asset. Sergej Kunz, co-founder of 1inch, suggested that if the US begins buying Bitcoin aggressively, it could cause a ripple effect where other nations rush to secure their own reserves. This could potentially make Bitcoin even harder to acquire. Beyond geopolitics, Hayes also shared his market outlook, and predicted that Bitcoin’s dominance in the crypto market will climb back to 70%. This is a level it reached before the 2021 altcoin season. Bitcoin dominance chart (Source: CoinMarketCap ) He argued that the traditional cycle of capital flowing from Bitcoin into altcoins will continue, although he acknowledged that outperformance will depend heavily on the specific assets investors choose. Currently, Bitcoin dominance stands at 63%, which is up from just under 60% at the start of the year. This is a major shift despite doubts from analysts like Benjamin Cowen and Ki Young Ju. Cowen has said he doesn’t expect Bitcoin dominance to return to 70%, while Ju believes the old model of altcoin season driven by BTC-to-altcoin rotation is outdated, with trading volume now favoring stablecoin and fiat pairs. Strategy Eyes More Bitcoin Strategy co-founder Michael Saylor has no plans of stepping away from Bitcoin, and once again signaled another potential Bitcoin purchase. This will be the company’s fourth consecutive week of accumulation. This sustained buying spree proves why Strategy is the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin and one of the most influential institutions driving adoption of the digital asset at a treasury level. The company’s most recent acquisition took place on April 28, when it purchased 15,355 BTC for over $1.4 billion. This transaction brought its total holdings to a staggering 553,555 BTC. According to SaylorTracker , the company is currently up approximately 39% on its total Bitcoin investment, with over $15 billion in unrealized gains. These figures kept Strategy at the center of institutional Bitcoin adoption conversations, not just for holding Bitcoin directly but also for influencing exposure through institutional investors who hold shares in Strategy’s publicly traded stock. Despite its impressive Bitcoin performance, Strategy reported mixed financial results for the first quarter of 2025. Revenue came in at around $111 million, which is a 3.6% year-over-year decline and fell short of analyst expectations by 5%. However, the company's aggressive Bitcoin strategy stayed unaffected. In total, Strategy acquired 61,497 BTC in 2025 alone and unveiled plans to raise an additional $21 billion via an equity offering to fund more purchases. Some industry analysts believe the company’s next move could be even more ambitious. Asset manager Richard Byworth proposed that Strategy should consider acquiring companies with large cash reserves and then converting those reserves into Bitcoin. He also explained that Strategy could choose to purchase Bitcoin directly on exchanges rather than through over-the-counter (OTC) deals. This approach will reduce available liquidity on the open market, which could potentially drive up prices and further increase the value of Strategy’s holdings. As a result, this could trigger additional institutional and retail interest in Bitcoin. Bitcoin analyst and author Adam Livingston agreed with these sentiments, and said that Strategy’s accumulation pace is dramatically outpacing Bitcoin’s daily supply. According to Livingston, Strategy is buying an average of 2,087 BTC per day. This is over four times the approximate 450 BTC that miners collectively produce daily. He argued that this buying pressure is effectively creating a synthetic halving, tightening supply and increasing scarcity far beyond the built-in halving schedule. This dynamic could fuel long-term price appreciation.
