(AUSTIN) — Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock today announced the appointment of the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee.

Created by the 89th Texas Legislature under Senate Bill 21, the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee is a five-member committee comprising Hancock and experts in investments and digital assets. Committee members will advise Hancock regarding the administration and management of the reserve, including recommendations for valuing digital assets in the reserve and establishing appropriate policies related to risk, digital asset management and custody of virtual currency.

“The Legislature gave the Comptroller’s office a clear responsibility to administer the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, and that work must be done with transparency, security and strong financial controls,” Hancock said. “This advisory committee brings together the kind of expertise needed to help the state carry out that direction carefully, responsibly and in the best interest of Texas taxpayers.”

Hancock named the following individuals to the Committee:

• Laurie Dotter: Dotter has 35-plus years of investment, finance and governance experience across public funds, private platforms and public companies. She chairs the Investment Advisory Board for the Employees Retirement System of Texas and has long served on the Comptroller’s Investment Advisory Board. Her leadership includes chairing SWK Holdings and advising multiple investment platforms. Her background spans executive roles in private investment firms, launches of multibillion-dollar real estate vehicles and service on public company boards and audit committees.
• Jamie McAvity: McAvity is the founder and CEO of Cormint Data Systems, a leading Texas bitcoin miner and globally recognized low-cost producer. An early bitcoin adopter, he is a noted expert in bitcoin mining, energy-optimized infrastructure and large-scale digital operations. Before founding Cormint in 2018, he built a successful commodities and derivatives trading career and helped scale a real estate-related SaaS firm to over 2 million units under management. Cormint’s 130-megawatt Fort Stockton facility has earned repeated top efficiency rankings. His expertise covers bitcoin security, mining operations, software systems and Texas energy markets.
• Carla Reyes: Reyes is a professor of law at Southern Methodist University and a leading scholar on emerging technology, digital assets and commercial law. A Fellow of the American College of Commercial Finance Lawyers and member of the American Law Institute, she has held key expert roles with the Uniform Law Commission and global research bodies. She now serves on the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Innovation Advisory Committee. Widely published and frequently invited to speak, she has testified before Congress and state legislatures on blockchain and technology policy.
• Gary A. Vecchiarelli, CPA: Vecchiarelli is president and CFO of CleanSpark, bringing 20-plus years of senior finance, accounting and public company leadership. He built the firm’s digital asset management program, establishing an institutional-grade trading desk, yield strategies, borrowing facilities and governance policies for bitcoin transactions. His broader career includes executive finance roles in high growth companies across technology, gaming, hospitality and biotech. Vecchiarelli maintains active CPA licenses in California and Nevada.

The Comptroller’s office also announced a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking a qualified firm to provide custody and liquidity services for the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. The selected firm will securely acquire, hold, manage and report the state’s bitcoin and cryptocurrency holdings while delivering institutional-grade security, cryptocurrency key management and operational controls. The selected firm also will support legislative reporting and build a public website to transparently display reserve holdings and educational materials.

The RFP is available through the Electronic State Business Daily on Texas SmartBuy.

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts serves as the chief financial officer — treasurer, check writer, tax collector, procurement officer and revenue estimator — for the world’s eighth-largest economy. The agency also administers statewide initiatives, including the Texas Broadband Development Office, State Energy Conservation Office, Texas Opioid Abatement Fund Council, Texas college savings plans and more.

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