Texas Blockchain Council

Founder Lee Bratcher, a former U.S. Army officer and political science professor at Dallas Baptist University, launched TBC in 2019 before stepping back from teaching to lead the organization full-time in 2021, the year it secured passage of two foundational Texas bills: HB 1576, which established a state blockchain working group, and HB 4474, which formally recognized virtual currencies under Texas law. The 2023 legislative session added further digital asset protections. In December 2024, HB 1598 created a mechanism allowing Bitcoin to enter the state treasury through donations. The council's most consequential engagement came in June 2025, when Governor Greg Abbott signed SB 21 into law, establishing the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve: a state-managed fund authorized to hold Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies maintaining at least a $500 billion average market capitalization over 24 months.

Member services span four channels: business development networking, policy-focused industry working groups, government affairs access including retained consultants and members-only legislative calls, and public relations and educational resources. TBC's annual flagship event, the North American Blockchain Summit, draws C-suite executives and institutional investors, along with policymakers, to Dallas. The 2024 edition ran November 20, 21 at the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum; the 2025 edition returned to the same venue October 9, 10.

In January 2026, TBC announced a leadership transition following six years under Bratcher. The Board unanimously appointed Giovanni Capriglione, a Texas House of Representatives member from northeast Tarrant County since 2012 and Chairman of the bipartisan Innovation and Technology Caucus, as President. Capriglione had personally sponsored SB 21 and shepherded it through the Legislature. Jessi Goostree was simultaneously named Executive Director; Bratcher moved to the Board of Directors.

One month later, TBC announced a strategic partnership with Chainlink Labs to advance digital asset standards across Texas. Under the collaboration, TBC members and Chainlink Labs are jointly engaging state policymakers and industry leaders on interoperability, data, compliance, and privacy standards for blockchain infrastructure. Chainlink's oracle network has facilitated more than $28 trillion in on-chain transaction value globally, extending TBC's reach into enterprise-grade infrastructure conversations.

With SB 21 enacted and a president whose legislative tenure spans virtually every major Texas digital asset bill, TBC heads into 2026 as the primary institutional interface between the state's Bitcoin mining and digital asset industries and the Texas Legislature.