Author: Naga Avan-Nomayo

Translation: ShenChao TechFlow

ShenChao Introduction: Aleš Michl, the governor of the Czech National Bank, delivered a keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2026 conference, supported by internal research data from the central bank, directly arguing the position of Bitcoin in sovereign reserve portfolios. Michl, a former investment banker, first proposed the idea of a Bitcoin reserve in January 2025, subsequently pushing for board authorization for in-depth research, and completed the first digital asset test purchase in November of the same year. This speech represents the most formal and direct endorsement of Bitcoin reserves among currently serving central bank governors, positioning the Czech National Bank as a global observation sample for sovereign crypto allocation.

Aleš Michl, the governor of the Czech National Bank, delivered a keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2026 conference in Las Vegas, directly defending Bitcoin's entry into central bank reserve portfolios based on the latest internal analytical data.

The title of the speech was "Diversifying Central Bank Reserves with Bitcoin." Michl said on stage: "Most people wouldn't put the central bank and Bitcoin together. I will."

CNB's Bitcoin Path

The Czech National Bank has gone the farthest among similar institutions, and Michl came this time with data to expand this position.

He introduced that the Czech National Bank currently manages approximately $180 billion in foreign exchange reserves. Internal research found that allocating just 1% to Bitcoin would increase the expected return of the portfolio while keeping overall risk roughly level—because Bitcoin has a low long-term correlation with traditional reserve assets.

"This is the future," he asserted on stage. At the same time, he did not shy away from the issue of volatility, pointing out that traditional assets also carry concentration risks.

The Block previously reported that Michl first proposed using Bitcoin as a reserve diversification tool in January 2025. He then suggested allocating up to 5% of reserves to this asset, gaining board authorization to conduct in-depth research, and in November 2025, completed the Czech National Bank's first digital asset purchase through a test portfolio, in which Bitcoin was included.

Trezor CFO: The Question Has Changed

The speech made the outline of the Czech case clearer.

Standard Chartered Bank earlier this year expressed the view that more sovereign wealth funds and even central banks might ultimately treat Bitcoin in the same way as gold—as a tool for portfolio diversification rather than a marginal asset. Michl is providing a face of a central bank governor to this judgment.

Trezor CFO Štěpán Uherík directly took over the topic at the venue. "The European Central Bank has always said Bitcoin lacks liquidity, is not secure enough, and is not suitable as a reserve. Governor Michl just presented research with conclusions that are quite the opposite," he said, noting that the focus of the question is shifting: it's no longer whether Bitcoin is ready, but whether other central banks can afford to ignore the conclusions of the Czech National Bank's research.

Uherík also mentioned the historical context of Prague. The world's first Bitcoin mining pool and the first hardware wallet both originated in this city, created by the same group of founders. He believes that the Czech National Bank's position reflects Prague's long-standing Bitcoin culture, rather than a momentary policy impulse.

Currently, Michl is still talking about diversification and has not yet reached the level of a disruptive reconstruction of the reserve framework. However, a central bank that has already purchased Bitcoin is publicly arguing for holding more on the world's largest Bitcoin stage—this signal itself is difficult to ignore.