New Bolivian Government Embraces Crypto-Assets and Stablecoins (Reuters)

Bolivia’s Economy Minister Jose Gabriel Espinoza announced the integration of crypto-assets into its formal financial system, starting with stablecoins. Banks will be allowed to offer crypto-asset services such as savings accounts, credit cards, and loans, so that crypto-assets begin to function as legal tender. This move is intended to leverage the growing adoption of stablecoins in Bolivia, which surged as citizens sought a hedge against boliviano depreciation. Espinoza said the policy is designed to boost financial inclusion and recognizes the global nature of crypto-assets, suggesting that using it to Bolivia’s advantage is preferable to trying to control it. [Source: Reuters]

New Road Repairs in Kazakhstan to be Financed Through Digital Tenge (Kazakhstan PMO)

Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced that it is advancing the use of its the country’s digital tenge central bank digital currency (CBDC) to finance government projects, starting with medium-term road repairs and the provision of school meal vouchers. The initiative aims to automate and monitor targeted budget spending using programmatic controls and marking of digital funds, ensuring funds are utilized strictly for contractually specified purposes. Pilot projects in road repairs and school meal distribution have highlighted needs for improved integration and sector-specific digital processes. Additional pilots are testing programmable spending in public procurement, SME support, digital VAT, safe transactions for vehicles and real estate, and procurement of medical and industrial equipment. The program is expected to increase payment transparency and efficiency, with further scaling and integration into broader treasury operations planned for the coming year. [Source: Kazakhstan’s PMO]

The Future of Payment Infrastructure Could Be Permissionlesse (NY Fed)

The New York (NY) Fed published an article that examines the potential role of permissionless blockchains in future payment infrastructures, focusing on how stablecoins leverage global, peer-to-peer transfer networks for accessibility and borderless payments. While stablecoin transaction volumes have skyrocketed, automated activity and bot transactions dominate, so true payment adoption still lags. The piece contrasts stablecoins’ borderless nature with faster payments systems like FedNow, noting that existing solutions remain reliant on bank accounts and thus exclude unbanked users and impede international transfers. Permissionless blockchains offer universal access, programmability, and composability, but face hurdles around regulation, security, privacy, and scalability. Despite growing regulatory clarity, mainstream adoption rests on balancing user control, societal safety, and functional integration with the financial system, as the public pivots from legacy account-based money toward digital, peer-to-peer transfers in practice. [Source: NY Fed]

The Rise of Tokenized Money Market Funds (BIS)

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) published an article on the fast-growing markets for tokenized money market funds (TMMFs). TMMFs operate as tokenized representations of money market fund shares on public permissionless blockchains. They function both as collateral and as savings vehicles, offering money market yields and regulatory protections of securities, unlike stablecoins, which do not pay interest. Primarily used in decentralized finance (DeFi), TMMFs enforce regulatory compliance through the “allow-listing” of blockchain wallets, limiting direct peer-to-peer trading to pre-approved participants, though this mechanism does not prevent all forms of secondary trading. While TMMFs aim to improve on stablecoins by providing yield and programmability, they also introduce risks, such as liquidity mismatches, as well as the operational and anti-money laundering / countering the financing of terrorism-related risks associated with stablecoins. [Source: BIS]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

The Digital Euro Conference 2026 (Frankfurt, March 26) will explore the future of money with a focus on CBDCs, stablecoins, and commercial bank tokens. This hybrid event offers the perfect platform to understand the future of digital money! [Register here and get 20% off the regular ticket price by using the Kiffmeister20 code!]

I produce a monthly digest of digital fiat currency (DFC) developments exclusively for the official sector (e.g., central banks, ministries of finance and international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank)) plus academics and firms that are active in the DFC space (commercial banks, technology providers, consultants, etc.). (DFCs include central bank digital currency (CBDC), stablecoins and tokenized deposits.) It goes out via email on the first business day of every month, and if you’re interested in being on the mailing list, please email me at john@kiffmeister.com.