Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve was founded in early 2025 by Tolbyus Shephard, who grew up in Altgeld Gardens. It received support from Bernadette Williams, the chairman of the local advisory committee of Altgeld Gardens. On October 14, 2025, the Illinois House of Representatives passed Resolution No. 446, recognizing ABR as the first community-operated Bitcoin reserve in the United States and commending Altgeld Gardens for its leadership in financial empowerment.
Altgeld Gardens: A History of Resilience and Community Empowerment
Altgeld Gardens was established in the 1940s, initially used to accommodate black veterans, defense workers, and their families during World War II. It has a long history of community organization and resilience.
Later on, this community became known as the "toxic donut" due to surrounding industrial pollution, landfills, and waste treatment facilities. Resident Hazel Johnson became a pioneer of environmental justice movements; in 1979, she founded People for Community Recovery to advocate for safer living conditions. In the 1980s, the young Barack Obama, before becoming President of the United States, served as a community organizer alongside residents of Altgeld.
For Tolbyus Shephard, who grew up in Altgeld Gardens, this reserve is a continuation of this history. It aims to create a financial asset owned by the community, with the intention of benefiting future generations.
"As someone who grew up in Altgeld Gardens, I founded Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve ( ABR ) based on a simple belief: if countries, states, the wealthy, and large institutions can all establish long-term financial reserves to secure their futures, why can't communities that lack such services do the same? Our communities too should have the opportunity to build, own, and preserve wealth for future generations," said Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve founder Tolbyus Shephard.
Emphasize ownership, rather than the project itself.
The concept of ABR revolves around a question that is rarely asked about community development: not what projects a community can acquire, but what it can permanently possess.
The reserve is managed using multi-signature custody, and proof of the reserve is made public, allowing residents and the public to directly verify its holdings on the Bitcoin network. Its governance framework prohibits speculative trading, lending, leverage, private withdrawals, and individual profit-seeking. The Bitcoin in the reserve will not be lent, pledged as collateral, or re-pledged under any circumstances.
In addition to reserves, ABR also provides financial literacy and Bitcoin education programs for residents, including ABR Bitcoin School aimed at young people, parents, and elderly individuals without technical or financial backgrounds. In March 2026, the organization held a community summit in Altgeld Community Center, bringing residents together with local leaders.
"For a community like Altgeld, most of what enters the community are projects, and projects will eventually end," said Arch Lending, co-founder of Himanshu Sahay. "We support this project as contributors, not as lenders. Bitcoin is considered a reserve, and that won't change because of our involvement."
“Altgeld has received investments in the past, but it has never had something that truly belonged to it and could be passed on to the next generation,” said Shephard. “It is only because of the serious approach of private partners that this has turned from an idea into a reality that residents can see.”
"A year ago, the Illinois House of Representatives recognized Altgeld Gardens as the location of the first community-operated Bitcoin reserve in the United States," said John M, a member of the Illinois House of Representatives and assistant leader of the minority party. "This reserve has always been about education, resilience, and building intergenerational wealth for underserved communities. The support from private partners is the kind of innovation and community-centered progress that we should encourage throughout Illinois."
A replicable pattern
ABR describes Altgeld Gardens as a proof of concept for a broader community Bitcoin reserve framework, which includes common standards in terms of custody, transparency, education, and governance that other communities can also adopt. The organization has been in contact with officials from Chicago and Illinois to discuss how to support this model, and the relevant legislation is still under consideration by the Illinois Legislature.
Arch Lending does not hold any ownership, right to repayment, investment returns, or governance rights within the reserve, nor does it control the reserve transactions.
With the expansion of reserve scales and the advancement of financial literacy and Bitcoin education programs, ABR also welcomes more donations from the community and the private sector.
Supports Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve
Individuals and institutions can directly donate Bitcoin to this reserve through communitybitcoinreserve.org. Select the orange marker Altgeld Gardens on the map, scroll to the bottom of the page to generate a Bitcoin address. The funds donated in this way will go directly into Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve.
About Arch Lending
Arch Lending is a lending platform headquartered in the United States that allows holders of alternative assets to borrow money using their holdings as collateral without having to sell the assets. The platform supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, PAX Gold, and Tether Gold as collateral. Eligible customers' assets are separately held in custody by Anchorage Digital at a 1:1 ratio. Anchorage Digital is a federally licensed bank and a qualified custodian institution, and these assets will not be re-pledged. Arch Lending is operated by ChainFi and Inc. For more information, see archlending.com.
About Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve
Altgeld Bitcoin Reserve is a community reserve that holds only Bitcoin and is intended for the long term, established in Chicago Altgeld Gardens. The Illinois House of Representatives recognized it with Resolution No. 446 in October 2025. For more information, see communitybitcoinreserve.org.
Media Contact
Nishy Siva
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