Kyrgyz President Brings CBDC Implementation Closer
Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov approved amendments giving the digital som legal force.
Chamomile Shumba | Edited by Nikhilesh De Updated April 18, 2025, 3:08 PM Published April 17, 2025, 7:12 PM
Key points:
- Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov approved changes giving the digital som legal status.
- The country is taking steps to issue a CBDC.
Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Japarov took a step toward issuing his own central bank digital currency on Thursday, signing a law that gives the “digital som” legal status.
The Central Asian republic is still considering whether to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC), but amendments to the Constitutional Law of the Kyrgyz Republic ensure that the digital som will be considered legal tender if the central bank decides to issue a CBDC.
“The purpose of amending the Constitutional Law is to launch a pilot project for a prototype of a national digital currency, the ‘digital som’, as well as to create its legal basis and status,” the statement on the president’s website says.
According to the new provisions, the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic will be able to develop and approve rules for making payments on the digital som platform.
The changes, listed as amendments on the president's website, were first approved by Kyrgyzstan's Supreme Council on March 20. The country is expected to begin testing the digital som this year, local news agency Trend News Agency reported. A final decision on issuing a CBDC is not expected until next year.
The idea of a CBDC is controversial among some cryptocurrency advocates, but countries such as the UK, Nigeria, Jamaica and the Bahamas, as well as the multinational bloc the European Union, are moving towards implementing CBDCs, while others, including the US, have largely abandoned the idea.
