Jersey City, New Jersey’s municipal pension plan is planning to invest in bitcoin through exchange-traded funds, as announced by Mayor Steven Fulop on social media. This decision, while not a large investment, is a significant step towards the wider adoption of cryptocurrency. Similar moves have been made by other pension plans, such as Wisconsin earlier this year.
Mayor Fulop, a Democrat who is running for the 2025 gubernatorial election in New Jersey, shared the news on social media. He mentioned that the city’s pension fund, the Employees Retirement System of Jersey City, is in the process of updating paperwork with the SEC to allocate a portion of the fund to bitcoin ETFs. This investment is expected to be completed by the end of the summer.
While the exact percentage of the pension fund’s assets that will be allocated to bitcoin ETFs was not specified, Fulop mentioned that it would be similar to the 2% allocation made by Wisconsin’s state pension fund. He also highlighted his belief in the importance of blockchain technology beyond just cryptocurrency.
Interest in bitcoin from public pension funds is on the rise, with larger funds like Wisconsin’s State of Wisconsin Investment Board making significant investments in crypto. Even smaller pension funds, like the Houston Firefighters’ Relief and Retirement Fund, have been involved in crypto for some time.
Public pension plans outside of the U.S. are also considering bitcoin investments. Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund, the world’s largest pension plan, issued a request for information on bitcoin investments earlier this year. Fulop believes that allocating to crypto will become more common among pension funds in the future.
The Jersey City Mayor’s Office did not respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment, but this move signifies a growing trend of institutional interest in cryptocurrency. As more pension funds and institutional investors enter the crypto space, it could have a significant impact on the market and further legitimize digital assets as an investment option.