King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck has signed a Royal Decree giving the Gelephu Financial Services Office full central banking powers, setting up its transition into the Gelephu Central Bank, according to the Bhutan Broadcasting Service , which cited a news release from Gelephu Mindfulness City. The city, a special administrative region in southern Bhutan, announced the decree on November 2.
The new institution will be an autonomous central bank that continues to regulate and supervise financial firms in the city. Daily Bhutan listed its mandate as formulating monetary policy, managing foreign reserves, maintaining financial stability, building payment and settlement systems, providing liquidity support when necessary and supporting money and capital markets.
The central bank will be authorized to invest in digital assets and cryptocurrencies alongside conventional reserve assets, BBS reported. Daily Bhutan noted that the decree does not oblige it to buy any particular token and that reserve decisions would need policies on risk, custody, liquidity and accountability. The decree also provides a pathway for the city to introduce its own currency, including a digital form, subject to the King's concurrence.
Bhutan's Royal Monetary Authority remains the national central bank and, under existing law, the only issuer of ngultrum notes and coins, Daily Bhutan reported. The Gelephu Central Bank's mandate covers the city, which remains part of Bhutan. How the two institutions will coordinate on currency, foreign exchange, payments and monetary policy has not been explained publicly.
The transition timetable has not been published either, nor have the rules that will govern the bank's expanded powers or its leadership. Daily Bhutan said more than 50 roles are expected to open to Bhutanese and international candidates, covering banking operations, monetary policy, regulatory policy, financial technology, virtual asset supervision, anti-money laundering and payment systems.
The Gelephu Financial Services Office has been the city's licensing authority for conventional finance and virtual assets. Blockhead reported in May that the city opened a fast-track licensing framework that bundles regulatory approval and corporate banking into one application, with BTSE Bhutan winning the first exchange-level in-principle approval. In September, BTSE received its full licence to run a trading venue and custody service. That piece noted that the framework offers a faster review to firms already regulated in Singapore, Abu Dhabi or Hong Kong and zero corporate tax for priority sectors through 2030.
A central bank adds the pieces a licensing regime lacks: settlement systems, liquidity support and a monetary authority for the city itself. Daily Bhutan said the decree grants the authority, while its operation depends on implementing rules, institutional capacity and the participation of licensed firms.
The decree follows a run of Bhutanese crypto moves. Blockhead reported in January 2025 that the city planned to hold bitcoin and other digital assets in strategic reserves , naming bitcoin, ether and BNB as candidates. In December 2025, Blockhead covered the kingdom's plan to deploy up to $1 billion of bitcoin to finance the city , alongside the launch of TER, a gold-backed token on Solana.
The size of the underlying holdings is disputed. Arkham Intelligence data showed wallets attributed to Druk Holding and Investments, Bhutan's sovereign investment arm, falling from about 13,000 bitcoin in October 2024 to about 3,100 by mid-May, CoinDesk reported , while the fund's chief executive said he did not recall selling any. Later estimates cited by Cryptonews put national holdings near 5,600 bitcoin by mid-2026. Arkham has said on-chain transfers cannot show whether coins were sold, moved or pledged.
On July 30, the city named Canadian asset manager 3iQ to run part of its bitcoin treasury. CoinDesk reported that the size and source of the mandate were not disclosed, and the mandate uses a market-neutral strategy.
The decree names no assets. BNB, one of the three tokens in the 2025 reserve plan, is issued by Binance, which disclosed a multibillion-dollar hot wallet theft last week.
The next markers are the formal establishment of the Gelephu Central Bank, the names of its leaders, the rules for its reserves and any agreement with the Royal Monetary Authority on currency and payments. A city currency would need more than the decree. Until those details appear, the central bank is a mandate with a legal basis and no published operating rules.
