Bermuda aims to show an example of how to introduce cryptocurrencies into everyday commerce without breaking the financial system, Prime Minister David Burt said on stage at Consensus Miami 2026 on Wednesday.
Burt said the small island in the Atlantic is expanding its “chain economy” initiative, a push to put stablecoins in the hands of local residents, merchants and businesses. The project was first announced in January at the World Economic Forum, with stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) and exchange Coinbase (COIN).
The government plans another airdrop of the USDC stablecoin this year, tied to next week’s Bermuda Digital Finance Forum 2026, while also adding merchants who can accept digital payments. Participants will receive stablecoins through wallets and will be able to spend them with local vendors, Burt said.
“If you are a provider and you accept digital assets, but you don’t have a way to use and spend them within your economy, that presents a problem,” Burt said.
The broader goal for Bermuda is to build payments infrastructure outside of traditional card networks and banking barriers, he said, arguing that small businesses face high transaction fees and limited access to financial applications common in larger markets.
Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal, who joined Burt on stage, said Bermuda’s approach stands out because regulators and private companies are building together rather than working separately.
“The most interesting thing about the Bermuda example is that it is a parallel process,” Grewal said. “Government services can be accessed through payment stablecoins, while merchants and businesses enter the system at the same time.”
Burt said Bermuda has spent years building a digital asset framework through its Digital Asset Business Act. He described the island’s regulatory style as iterative and industry-oriented, with the Bermuda Monetary Authority working directly with companies on issues such as betting, lending and DeFi oversight.
“You can’t regulate failure,” Burt said. “But elements can be implemented that allow responsible innovation to occur.”
Grewal also contrasted Bermuda’s approach with the regulatory climate that crypto companies faced in the US in recent years under former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler. That has changed for the better under the Trump administration, he argued.
“It’s a new day here in the United States,” Grewal said, pointing to what he described as a more constructive tone from agencies under SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Michael Selig.
“We still have challenges, to be clear, but it’s a very different dynamic,” he said.
