US State of Indiana Seeks Bitcoin ETF Exposure for Retirement Funds

Jake Teshka, the representative of the US state of Indiana, has introduced legislative bill to seek Bitcoin ETF exposure for retirement funds. The regulated BTC ETFs made strong inroads into the US market last year with the total assets under management across 12 ETFs crossing $122 billion. Moreover, US states like Utah have started making moves to build their own Bitcoin reserves.

Indiana State Bill Proposes Bitcoin ETF Investment Option

A new state House bill (HB 1322) requires the Department of Administration to evaluate blockchain technology’s potential for improving government efficiency and data security by March 2026. The bill, authored by Rep. Jake Teshka and co-authored by Reps. Shane Lindauer and Cory Criswell, also authorize state retirement funds to invest in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

The department must submit findings to the legislative council by October 2026. If passed, the law would allow investments from the public employees’ retirement fund, state teachers’ retirement fund, and public officers’ funds in certain Bitcoin-related investment vehicles such as Bitcoin ETFs.

Over the last 13 years, Bitcoin has generated a staggering 109% annual compounded returns making it one of the most attractive investment asset classes. As a result, investors are looking beyond traditional investment options to take some BTC exposure and provide better returns to the fund holders.

Pension Funds Seeks Exposure to Crypto ETFs

A recent report highlights a growing trend among crypto pension funds toward US-regulated cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Pension schemes in states like Wisconsin and Michigan have emerged as significant investors in crypto-focused funds, alongside increasing participation from UK and Australian pension funds, albeit with smaller investments.

The State of Wisconsin Investment Board currently holds a $155 million stake in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF. On the other hand, Michigan is the sixth-largest shareholder in Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF, with a $12.9 million stake.

Furthermore, a recent Bitget Research report suggests that 20% of the GenZ and Alpha generation prefer crypto pensions. For younger generations, particularly Gen Z and Gen Alpha, traditional pensions are no longer seen as the foundation of financial security.

BTC ETF Flows Dry Up

Following Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, spot Bitcoin ETF saw massive inflows for over a week. However, amid the crypto market volatility this week, the inflows have dried up a bit after $457 million of outflows on Monday. This outflow follows a massive crash in the US stock market as Chinese innovators unveiled DeepSeek, an AI model that threatened OpenAI and NVIDIA.

Back to Bitcoin ETFs, on Wednesday, the net inflows stood at $92 million. Surprisingly, the BlackRock Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) saw $28.4 million worth of outflows while the Grayscale mini-Bitcoin ETF (BTC) saw inflows of $106 million as per the Farside Investors data. As of press time, the Bitcoin price is trading 2.5% up at $105,109 with daily trading volume surging 24% to more than $52 billion.