South Carolina has enacted a brand new regulation geared toward establishing a transparent and supportive framework for cryptocurrency use, marking one of the complete state-level efforts so far.
Governor Henry McMaster signed Senate Invoice 163 into regulation on Might 19 after it handed the legislature with robust bipartisan help, clearing the Senate in a 38–1 vote and the Home in a 110–1 vote. The measure amends the state’s authorized code to outline key digital asset actions whereas outlining protections for customers, companies, and infrastructure tied to the sector.
On the core of the laws is a provision that affirms the best of people and companies to make use of digital property like bitcoin in commerce. The regulation states that no entity could also be prohibited from accepting cryptocurrencies as cost for items and providers.
It additionally ensures the best to carry property in self-hosted or {hardware} wallets, reinforcing the precept of self-custody.
The invoice additional prevents South Carolina and native governments from imposing further taxes or charges on transactions that contain digital property when these property are used as a technique of cost. Lawmakers framed this provision as a means to make sure parity between digital property and U.S. {dollars} in business use.
South Carolina: No CBDC use by state actors
One other key factor of the South Carolina regulation is its stance on central financial institution digital currencies. The laws bars any state company, division, or political subdivision from accepting or requiring funds in a CBDC.
It additionally prohibits participation in any testing program tied to a Federal Reserve-issued digital foreign money. The measure displays considerations amongst some policymakers about privateness, monetary surveillance, and federal overreach.
The regulation additionally consists of protections for cryptocurrency mining operations, a sector that has sought clearer guidelines on the state degree. Native governments are restricted from imposing limits on mining companies in industrial zones that differ from these utilized to different industries in the identical areas. Noise laws should align with basic requirements quite than guidelines that concentrate on mining operations.
As well as, a number of crypto-related actions are exempt from cash transmitter licensing necessities. These embrace mining, operating community nodes, growing blockchain-based software program, and interesting in crypto-to-crypto transactions.
Different States passing pro-bitcoin measures
South Carolina joins a rising group of states pursuing laws that helps digital asset adoption. Kentucky passed an analogous measure in 2025 that protected self-custody rights and restricted native restrictions on mining. Missouri’s Home Invoice 2080, launched by Ben Keathley, would also establish a state-managed Bitcoin reserve fund permitting the treasurer to accumulate, maintain, and oversee bitcoin below strict custody, reporting, and long-term holding necessities.
The passage of S. 163 alerts a continued push on the state degree to form crypto coverage within the absence of a unified federal framework, with lawmakers searching for to draw funding whereas addressing considerations tied to rising monetary applied sciences.
