University of Wyoming launches Bitcoin Research Institute

The Bitcoin Research Institute will open in August as part of the University of Wyoming’s College of Arts and Sciences.

Update (July 29 at 6:00 am UTC): This article has been updated to correct the Fahrenheit conversion figure

The University of Wyoming is set to launch the UW Bitcoin Research Institute in August, which aims to provide “high-quality peer-reviewed” studies about Bitcoin.

Bradley Rettler, a Bitcoin activist and Associate Professor at the University of Wyoming, announced the new institute on X on July 28. He will serve as the institute’s director.

Rettler described the current state of Bitcoin (BTC) research as “poor” and stressed the industry needs more “high-quality peer-reviewed” publications to ensure the public is properly informed about what Bitcoin is and how it works.

He highlighted a 2018 study led by University of Hawaii Professor Camilo Mora that claimed Bitcoin emissions alone could increase global warming by 3.6° Fahrenheit (2 Degrees Celsius) by 2048.

“They failed to account for the difficulty adjustment *and* didn’t know there was a block size cap,” Rettler stressed in a July 28 X post.

“These mistakes make their way into journalism, and policy. Bitcoin is multi-faceted in theory, and even more so in practice. Journalists can’t be experts, so they rely on academics. Too many of those academics have let them down.”

One of the institute’s professors is Andrew M. Bailey, lead author of “Resistance Money: A Philosophical Case for Bitcoin.” Rettler was also named as an author of the book.

The Bitcoin Research Institute will officially open in August when the Fall semester for 2024-2025 begins.

It will run annual summer workshops, offer academic prizes and host weekly seminars, according to its website.

Related: Bitcoin firm, Texas university partner for $5M endowment fund

The BRI is classed as a nonprofit and is accepting Bitcoin donations to assist research.

“We allocate 4% of our investments to bitcoin, so if you donate bitcoin, we will not sell it,” Rettler explained.

Wyoming is fast becoming a leading Bitcoin state in the United States, largely due to pro-Bitcoin Senator Cynthia Lummis and Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Bank, which offers Bitcoin custody solutions.

Lummis announced a strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill at the Bitcoin 2024 conference in Nashville on July 27, which would see the US buy 5% of the 21 million Bitcoin that will ever enter into circulation.

“It can be used for one purpose, to reduce our debt,” Lummis declared during her keynote speech.

Wyoming lawmakers passed a bill in February, 2023, that prohibits state courts from forcing someone to disclose their digital asset private keys. The state also provides a legal framework for decentralized autonomous organizations.