Brazil continues positioning itself as a cryptocurrency leader through dual developments: advancing legislation for a Strategic Sovereign Bitcoin Reserve whilst its stock exchange introduces Ethereum and Solana futures contracts.

The Strategic Sovereign Bitcoin Reserve (RESBit) bill has progressed through its initial committee stage in the Chamber of Deputies, potentially authorising Brazil to become the first G20 nation legally holding Bitcoin within sovereign reserves, Invezz reported.

The proposal could commit up to 5% of Brazil's $370bn international holdings - approximately $18.5bn - into the digital asset.

Legislative proposal PL 4501/2024 would empower Brazil's Finance Ministry and Central Bank to purchase and maintain Bitcoin alongside traditional reserve assets including gold and foreign currencies.

The bill emphasises Bitcoin's potential as a strategic hedge against macroeconomic volatility whilst diversifying reserve portfolios traditionally dependent on fiat currencies and sovereign bonds.

Simultaneously, Brazil's B3 stock exchange launched trading on Ethereum and Solana futures contracts, representing initial steps toward offering additional altcoin derivatives, BeInCrypto reported.

The exchange also modified existing Bitcoin futures contracts, reducing contract sizes tenfold to attract domestic retail investors.

"B3 is offering new cryptocurrency derivatives instruments to meet the growing demand for products linked to cryptoassets, bringing more innovation and sophistication to our products, in addition to offering more alternatives to investors familiar with blockchain technology," said Marcos Skistymas, B3's Products Director.

The new altcoin futures target international clientele, priced in US dollars with settlements occurring monthly on final Fridays.

Each Ethereum contract represents 0.25% of the token whilst Solana futures represent five SOL tokens, based on Nasdaq-listed underlying asset prices.