Bermuda’s government announced a partnership with Coinbase and Circle to establish a “fully onchain” national economy, leveraging USDC stablecoins and Coinbase’s Base blockchain infrastructure. The initiative will start with a pilot program, enabling government agencies to process stablecoin-based payments, integrate tokenization tools into local financial institutions, and implement nationwide digital literacy programs.
Premier David Burt emphasized that the effort aims to lower costs, expand access to financial services, and ensure residents benefit from emerging digital finance technologies.
Regulatory Foundations and Market Context
The partnership builds on Bermuda’s 2018 Digital Asset Business Act, a comprehensive regulatory framework designed to attract crypto companies. The island has already seen growing adoption of digital payments among local businesses, including a USDC airdrop distributed at the Bermuda Digital Finance Forum in May 2025.
In an institutional context, Bermuda is positioning itself as a global hub for blockchain-based financial services, seeking to combine regulatory clarity with innovative fintech offerings amid increasing interest in stablecoins and tokenized assets.
Global Engagement and Strategic Implications
The announcement coincided with the World Economic Forum in Davos, where executives from Coinbase and Circle, alongside Burt, highlighted the potential for blockchain to modernize national economies.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong emphasized discussions with world leaders on tokenization and stablecoin integration, noting the importance of level regulatory treatment for both banks and crypto firms. The pilot aligns with broader institutional trends toward digital payments, tokenized assets, and blockchain infrastructure, offering a testing ground for scalable applications of a fully onchain economy in a regulated jurisdiction.