Indiana will start allowing certain retirement and savings plans to include crypto investments and has enacted stronger legal protections for the crypto industry under a newly signed bill.
Governor Mike Braun signed House Bill 1042 into law on Tuesday, after it passed the legislature last Thursday. The legislation requires Indiana’s state public retirement and savings plans to offer self-brokerage accounts with at least one crypto investment option by July 2027.
According to the bill’s description, this requirement applies to the legislators’ defined contribution plan, the Hoosier START plan, certain public employees’ retirement funds, and specified teachers’ retirement fund plans.
More institutions are adopting digital assets, with Bitbo estimating that over 3.7 million Bitcoin (BTC) (worth $258 billion) are held by publicly traded and private companies, exchange-traded funds and governments.
Protections for crypto payments and mining
The bill also includes provisions to protect the rights of crypto users. Under the legislation, public agencies — except the Department of Financial Institutions — are barred from adopting or enforcing rules that ban crypto payments, self-custody or mining.
The bill also clarifies that a money transmitter license isn’t required for apps and software protocols that allow non-custodial transfers.
Local governments, such as counties, municipalities, or townships, also can’t single out crypto mining businesses or home miners with special restrictions not applied to similar businesses or activities in the same zoning area.
Related: Missouri lawmakers advance new Bitcoin strategic reserve bill
Noise from crypto mining operations has caused friction in other states. Residents in Hood County, Texas, attempted to form a new municipality to regulate noise from a local mining facility last year.
Access to retirement funds a boon for crypto
At the federal level, President Donald Trump’s August executive order “Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors” directed the SEC to make alternative assets like crypto more accessible in participant-directed retirement plans.
Some analysts, such as Tom Dunleavy, the head of venture at Varys Capital and a former senior analyst at Messari, predicted that even a 1% allocation to crypto in 401(k)s could bring in $120 billion in new flows.
Magazine: 6 massive challenges Bitcoin faces on the road to quantum security
