New Hampshire’s Executive Council has rejected a proposal to issue up to $100 million in Bitcoin-backed revenue bonds linked to Bitcoin miner CleanSpark.
Summary
- New Hampshire’s Executive Council rejected the proposed $100 million Bitcoin-backed bond by a 3-2 vote.
- CleanSpark planned to post about $160 million in Bitcoin without exposing taxpayers to direct repayment risk.
- Moody’s assigned the proposed bonds a Ba2 speculative-grade rating before the final state approval failed.
The five-member council voted 3-2 against the plan during its July 8 meeting. The decision blocked the final state approval required for the New Hampshire Business Finance Authority to proceed with the transaction.
Meanwhile, the proposal appeared on the state’s July 8 Executive Council agenda. It called for the Business Finance Authority to issue taxable revenue bonds for NH CleanSpark Borrower Trust 2026-1.
The borrower planned to use the proceeds to finance a Bitcoin purchase and cover costs tied to the bond issuance. However, the Executive Council rejected the request after a public hearing and final review.
According to a Wednesday post on X, New Hampshire journalist Kevin Landrigan, three council members voted against the proposal, while two supported it.
The vote ended what supporters had presented as the first rated Bitcoin-backed bond issued through a U.S. state authority. The Business Finance Authority had approved the structure in November 2025, but the deal still needed approval from the governor and council.
CleanSpark planned $160M Bitcoin collateral
Under the proposed structure, a private borrower connected to CleanSpark would have posted about $160 million in Bitcoin as collateral for bonds worth up to $100 million.
The parties planned to hold the Bitcoin in segregated wallets managed by BitGo. If the collateral value fell below about $140 million, the structure would have triggered liquidation and bond redemption.
The bonds were designed as limited-recourse obligations. Bondholders could claim only the Bitcoin collateral and related proceeds if the borrower failed to repay them.
As previously reported by crypto.news, the state would not have pledged taxpayer funds, its general credit or other public assets to the deal.
Governor Kelly Ayotte supported the proposal. She said the structure could bring new investment opportunities to New Hampshire “without risking state funds or taxpayer dollars.”
However, council members who opposed the plan raised doubts about the use of a state-linked authority for a Bitcoin-backed financing structure.
Moody’s gave bonds a Ba2 rating
Moody’s Ratings assigned the proposed bonds a provisional Ba2 rating in March. That rating sits below investment grade and falls within Moody’s speculative-grade category.
The rating agency reviewed two proposed taxable bond series with maturities in 2029. Bitcoin price volatility and the operation of the collateral liquidation process formed key parts of the credit review.
The collateral would have represented about 160% of the principal issued. That overcollateralization aimed to protect bondholders during market declines.
Still, a Ba2 rating shows that Moody’s viewed the bonds as carrying material credit risk. The rating did not provide a guarantee against losses or prevent the council from rejecting the transaction.
Supporters may seek another vote
New Hampshire House Majority Floor Leader Keith Ammon criticized the council’s decision. He called it “an extremely short-sighted decision” and asked members to reconsider the proposal after reviewing more information.
Ammon said the rejection could reduce future fee revenue for the Business Finance Authority. However, the authority has not announced a new hearing or revised version of the bond plan.
The decision comes despite New Hampshire’s wider support for digital assets. As crypto.news previously reported, the state approved the initial bond framework in 2025.
New Hampshire also became the first U.S. state to authorize a strategic cryptocurrency reserve. Its law allows the state treasurer to invest a limited share of eligible public funds in qualifying digital assets.
The failed bond vote does not reverse that reserve law. It applies only to the CleanSpark-linked conduit bond proposal presented to the Executive Council.
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