The Kingdom of Bhutan is taking a major step toward digital sovereignty by migrating its national identity system from Polygon to Ethereum. Nearly 800,000 citizens will now be able to verify their identities and access government services directly through the Ethereum blockchain.
The full Ethereum integration has already been completed, while the migration of all citizen credentials is expected to be finalized by Q1 2026. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and Ethereum Foundation Chair Aya Miyaguchi attended the official launch ceremony in Thimphu alongside Bhutan’s Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay and Crown Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuk. Miyaguchi called the project the world’s first national-level identity system built on Ethereum — a landmark moment for blockchain-based governance.
Bhutan’s ID system was initially developed on Hyperledger Indy and later migrated to Polygon in 2024. The shift to Ethereum reflects the country’s growing focus on decentralization, security, and privacy — particularly through the implementation of zero-knowledge proofs, which allow users to prove their identity without revealing personal data.
Bhutan has quietly become a leader in blockchain innovation. Known for measuring its progress through Gross National Happiness rather than GDP, the Himalayan kingdom is now one of the largest sovereign Bitcoin holders in the world, with 11,286 BTC worth approximately $1.31 billion. Its Bitcoin reserves come from hydropower-driven mining, using renewable energy from its mountain dams.
Beyond Ethereum, Bhutan continues to explore broader crypto initiatives. Prime Minister Tobgay recently met with former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, sparking speculation about future blockchain partnerships in the region.
By adopting Ethereum as the foundation for its national ID infrastructure, Bhutan is proving that decentralization, data protection, and government efficiency can coexist — setting a global precedent for digital governance in the 21st century.
Ethereum 🤝 Bhutan
This is cool – Bhutan just integrated the BhutanNDI system with Ethereum.
Vitalik and Aya joined the ceremony with the Prime Minister and Crown Prince.
BhutanNDI is a private SSI system for verifiable credentials on-chain for anything citizen related 🇧🇹 pic.twitter.com/Lxi7vlGl43
— timour kosters (@timourxyz) October 13, 2025
Pay in #BNB using @Binance Pay in Bhutan🇧🇹, nice and easy. 😏 pic.twitter.com/B5p3YolJjJ
— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) September 29, 2025