Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Japarov said a recently launched stablecoin pegged to the country’s fiat currency has been listed on cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
In a Wednesday X post, Japarov said Kyrgyzstan’s KGST stablecoin, pegged to the som, would contribute to the development of cross-border payments and deepen the country’s ties to the crypto ecosystem. Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao wrote on social media that “many more” nation-backed stablecoins would be coming to the exchange.
Zhao began advising the central Asian nation in April as part of an agreement to provide technical expertise and consulting services.
The mountainous, landlocked country with a population of about 7 million has become increasingly bullish on digital assets. In September, Kyrgyzstan advanced legislation aimed at creating a state crypto reserve and expanding the country’s digital asset industry.
The country also recently launched USDKG, a US dollar–pegged stablecoin backed by physical gold. The token was issued on the Tron network with an initial supply of 50 million units and there are plans to expand to the Ethereum blockchain.
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Countries move to launch stablecoins tied to local currencies
While dollar-pegged stablecoins such as Tether’s USDTt (USDT) and Circle’s USDC (USDC) account for the bulk of the market’s capitalization, several countries and economic blocs have launched their own currency-backed stablecoins or are planning to.
In October, Tokyo-based fintech company JPYC launched Japan’s first yen-pegged stablecoin, alongside a platform for issuing the token. The JPYC stablecoin is backed by bank deposits and Japanese government bonds and is designed to trade at parity with the yen.
In December, SBI Holdings and Startale Group signed an MoU to develop a regulated, yen-denominated stablecoin that would be issued and redeemed by Shinsei Trust & Banking, with a launch expected in the second quarter of 2026.
Also in December, a consortium of 10 European banks said it plans to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin in the second half of 2026 through Amsterdam-based entity Qivalis. BNP Paribas said the stablecoin would be issued under authorization from the Dutch Central Bank and designed to comply with the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets framework.
In December, UAE telecom group e& signed a memorandum of understanding with Al Maryah Community Bank to explore using a dirham-pegged stablecoin for consumer payments as part of the United Arab Emirates push toward regulated digital finance.
The current stablecoin market cap is $308.9 billion as of Wednesday, according to DefiLlama data.
Additional reporting by Turner Wright.
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