Swiss Bitcoin Reserve Bid Fails
A Swiss campaign to require the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to hold Bitcoin (BTC) as part of its official reserves collapsed on May 9, after organizers failed to collect the 100,000 signatures needed to force a national referendum, according to a CoinDesk report.
Why the Swiss Bitcoin Reserve Drive Fell Short
The initiative sought to amend Switzerland’s constitution to place Bitcoin alongside gold and foreign-currency holdings on the SNB’s balance sheet. Under Swiss direct democracy rules, any proposal that secures 100,000 valid signatures within 18 months goes to a national popular vote.
This campaign did not reach that threshold.
Organizers had modeled their effort partly on Switzerland’s gold initiative of 2014, which cleared the signature bar and reached a referendum before voters rejected it. The Bitcoin proposal attracted attention from the international cryptocurrency community, but domestic political momentum proved insufficient.
The SNB holds roughly 1,040 tonnes of gold on its balance sheet, making it one of the larger gold-reserve holders in proportion to GDP among developed economies.
No statement from SNB officials on the initiative was available at publication time. The bank has previously said it does not view Bitcoin as a suitable reserve asset, citing price volatility and a lack of the deep liquidity it requires.
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Background: National Bitcoin Reserve Efforts Globally
The Swiss drive was one of several national-level reserve proposals that emerged after the United States signaled strategic interest in digital assets in early 2025.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March 2025 directing a review of a potential U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve, a move that prompted legislators and advocacy groups in multiple countries to table similar proposals. Brazil, Poland, and the Czech Republic each saw parliamentary discussions in 2025, though none advanced to a binding vote.
Switzerland’s failure adds to a pattern in which constitutional or legislative Bitcoin reserve proposals generate public debate but stall before reaching voters.
The most advanced parallel effort remains in the U.S., where a separate legislative push for a formal strategic reserve bill was still moving through committee as of May 2026.
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What Comes Next
The failure does not permanently close the Swiss constitutional path. Organizers could restart a signature drive with a revised proposal.
Swiss law has no waiting period barring a new initiative on the same subject. Whether the campaign restarts depends in part on Bitcoin’s price trajectory and whether a U.S. strategic reserve bill passes, which advocates believe would change the political calculus for central bank adoption in Europe.
No restart announcement had been made as of May 9.
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