Florida's CFO says state holds about $800 million in crypto investments

Florida's Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis said Thursday during a televised interview with CNBC that the state holds about $800 million in "crypto-related" investments in its portfolio.

Patronis said he would not be surprised if the amount grew should former President Donald Trump be reelected next month. Earlier this week, Patronis said in a letter that Florida should direct "a portion of state retirement system monies into cryptocurrency."

Florida is not the first U.S. governmental body to invest in crypto-related financial instruments. Both the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Jersey City, New Jersey make up two other recent examples. In a May filing, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board said it owned $163 million in spot bitcoin ETFs.

Echoing Trump

Patronis also referenced Trump proposing the U.S. amass a stockpile of crypto , namely bitcoin.

"This comes as the Communist Party of China makes inroads every day into the crypto world to grab control over this emerging currency," Patronis wrote in his letter. "Trump said he would establish a crypto presidential advisory council and create a national "stockpile" of bitcoin using cryptocurrency the U.S. government currently hold."

In his CNBC interview, Patronis also said he believes Florida needs a hedge against the "massive overreach by the federal government with a centralized currency."