Kyrgyzstan is moving forward with its national cryptocurrency strategy, launching a stablecoin and preparing for the public sector launch of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), according to Binance co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ).
The new stablecoin, believed to be KGST, is pegged 1:1 to the national currency, the Kyrgyz som, and is registered in the State Register of Digital Assets. It differs from USDKG, a dollar-backed stablecoin backed by $500 million in gold reserves from Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Finance scheduled to launch in the third quarter.
At the same time, the country’s CBDC, the digital som, is now legally recognized and is expected to be tested for government-related payments, CZ added.
This follows President Sadyr Japarov’s April decision to amend the country’s constitutional law, granting the digital som legal tender status if the National Bank launches it in full.
Kyrgyzstan is also building broader crypto infrastructure. It created a national cryptocurrency reserve including BNB, launched law enforcement training, and signed Binance Academy to partner with 10 universities.
Binance also localized its app in Kyrgyzstan and hosted a meeting of 1,000 people in the capital, Bishkek, Zhao noted.
Sign, in which CZ’s family fund YZi Labs invests, is also working with the Kyrgyz government on smart contract infrastructure, he added.
