North Carolina Proposes Digital Asset Freedom Act Amidst Anti-CBDC Legislation

According to Cointelegraph, North Carolina Representative Neal Jackson introduced the North Carolina Digital Asset Freedom Act on April 10, 2025. The proposed legislation aims to recognize qualifying digital assets as a legitimate form of payment, including for tax purposes. While the bill does not explicitly mention Bitcoin, it outlines criteria that align closely with Bitcoin's characteristics. These include a minimum market capitalization of $750 billion, a daily trading volume exceeding $10 billion, a market history of at least a decade, proven censorship resistance, a proof-of-work consensus mechanism, absence of a central authority, 99.98% or more network uptime, and a capped supply. The bill emphasizes that decentralized digital assets, free from central governance, adhere to economic principles of limited, noninflationary money, ensuring transaction security and integrity. This legislative move is part of a broader trend in the United States, where states are exploring Bitcoin strategic reserve legislation in response to inflation concerns, high federal debt, and currency depreciation. The introduction of the Digital Asset Freedom Act follows North Carolina's firm stance against central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). In July 2024, former Governor Roy Cooper vetoed a bill that sought to ban CBDCs, describing it as premature and reactionary. However, the North Carolina House of Representatives overrode this veto in August 2024 with a decisive 73-41 vote, followed by the Senate's 27-17 vote in September 2024, effectively enacting the anti-CBDC legislation. Dan Spuller, head of industry affairs at the Blockchain Association, praised North Carolina lawmakers for their opposition to CBDCs. He criticized Governor Cooper's veto, suggesting it was a missed opportunity to convey a strong message to the Federal Reserve about the state's unified stance against CBDCs. Spuller's comments reflect a broader sentiment within the crypto advocacy community, which views state-level actions as crucial in shaping the future of digital currencies in the United States. As North Carolina continues to navigate the evolving landscape of digital assets and CBDCs, the outcomes of these legislative efforts could have significant implications for the state's economic and financial strategies.