National Stablecoin and Digital Currency Initiatives
Kyrgyzstan launched its national stablecoin, KGST, on the BNB Chain on Friday. This launch is part of a broader strategy that includes plans to develop a central bank digital currency (CBDC) and explore the establishment of a state cryptocurrency reserve. President Sadyr Japarov announced these initiatives following a meeting of the National Council for the Development of Virtual Assets and Blockchain Technologies.
Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao attended the council's second meeting in his capacity as a strategic adviser, a role he assumed around April 2025. Zhao confirmed that BNB would be considered for inclusion in the country's potential crypto reserve, although no official proposals have been submitted yet.
The KGST stablecoin is designed to maintain a 1:1 peg with the Kyrgyzstani som. Local media outlet KG24 reported that the crypto committee has been tasked with securing listings for KGST on international platforms and submitting reserve proposals within a two-month timeframe.
Development of the Digital Som (CBDC)
President Japarov has instructed the Ministry of Economy and Commerce to continue developing a legislative framework for virtual assets. Concurrently, the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic has been directed to commence pilot testing of the digital som. This digital som initiative is separate from the KGST stablecoin project.
The digital som pilot program will be implemented in three distinct phases. The initial phase involves connecting the National Bank with commercial banks to facilitate interbank transfers. The second phase will integrate the Central Treasury to enable social and government payments. The final phase is dedicated to testing offline and low-connectivity transactions, paving the way for national deployment.
Build Block TECH has partnered with the National Bank to develop the CBDC platform. The National Bank stated that the platform will be scaled nationally following the successful completion of all three pilot phases. Previously, the National Bank had indicated that a decision on CBDC issuance would not be made until the end of 2026.
Crypto Market Volume and Educational Initiatives
Farkhat Iminov, head of the crypto council's Secretariat, reported significant activity in Kyrgyzstan's crypto market. In the first half of 2025, crypto exchange volume reached 860 billion soms, which is approximately $10 billion. This volume represents a substantial 47% increase compared to the total annual volume recorded in 2024.
Changpeng Zhao announced that Binance Academy will collaborate with 10 leading universities in Kyrgyzstan. Additionally, the Binance app will undergo full localization across the country. President Japarov has also directed the Ministry of Science, Higher Education, and Innovation to develop digital financial literacy programs and to train specialists in the blockchain and AI industries.
Global CBDC Landscape
Globally, over 100 nations have initiated CBDC projects, although only three have successfully launched operational CBDCs to date. The Bahamas Sand Dollar, Nigeria's e-Naira, and Jamaica's JAM-DEX remain the only live central bank digital currencies worldwide.
At the time of writing, BNB was trading at $1,151, marking a 2.83% increase over the preceding 24 hours.