This week, Panama City’s mayor caught everyone’s attention by dropping a curious hint on social media — the possibility of creating a city-level Bitcoin fund.

What started as a brief tweet quickly stirred up discussions across the crypto community.

Mayor Mayer Mizrachi simply wrote “Bitcoin Reserve” on X (formerly Twitter) on May 16, right after meeting with Bitcoin advocates Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert.

These two are well-known for their role in pushing El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption, so the timing felt like more than just a casual mention.

What Happened During the Meeting?

Local insiders say Mizrachi and the Bitcoin duo had a detailed chat about how to shape Bitcoin policies for Panama City.

However, the mayor didn’t reveal much beyond that initial post.

Interestingly, he shared the tweet just before heading to the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, hinting that something bigger could be in the works for Panama City’s relationship with crypto.

Navigating Legal Challenges

If Panama City wants to officially create a Bitcoin reserve, there’s a long road ahead.

It would require approval from Panama’s National Assembly, meaning lawmakers would need to draft and pass a new law.

This process isn’t quick — committees have to carefully study the proposal, debate its pros and cons, make amendments, and verify budget feasibility.

Only after these steps could the city legally hold Bitcoin on its financial records.

Looking at Energy and Sustainability

Energy also came up during discussions. Keiser pointed out Panama’s strong potential for hydroelectric power, alongside El Salvador’s success with geothermal energy.

The idea is to use green and cheap energy sources to power Bitcoin mining operations.

While this sounds promising, it comes with its own set of challenges.

Upgrading the energy grid and obtaining the necessary permits will require cooperation between companies and government regulators.

Panama City Prepares for Crypto Payments

Mayor Mizrachi has already shared plans to accept cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ether, Tether, and USDC for city transactions once the payment infrastructure is ready.

This means building secure and reliable crypto-to-fiat exchange systems, which banks or fintech companies would manage.

Secure digital wallets for the city to hold any incoming crypto funds will also be needed.

Although there’s no official launch date yet, this initiative is clearly on the city’s agenda.

Bigger Picture: Companies Are Boosting Bitcoin Holdings

It’s not just governments that are getting serious about Bitcoin.

Public companies are also ramping up their Bitcoin investments.

Michael Saylor’s firm, Strategy Corp., recently announced plans to raise $84 billion to buy more Bitcoin — part of this involves selling $21 billion in stock.

They also doubled their debt limit from $21 billion to $42 billion, with $14.6 billion still available to borrow.

Meanwhile, in Japan, Metaplanet added 1,240 BTC (worth around $127 million) to its holdings, bringing its total Bitcoin stash to over 6,700 BTC — valued at more than $700 million.

Reports indicate that publicly traded companies increased their Bitcoin holdings by 15% in the first quarter of the year.

This trend shows that many see Bitcoin as a strategic, long-term asset rather than just a speculative bet.