The King of Bhutan announces the deployment of 10,000 Bitcoins to establish the “Gelephu Mindfulness City,” using digital assets to combat talent outflow and reshape the economy
(Background: Sovereign endorsement! Bhutan collaborates with Solana to launch the gold token “TER,” officially launching on 12/17 National Day)
(Additional context: Bhutan has migrated 800,000 citizens’ “national digital identities” onto Ethereum, Vitalik: allowing citizens to confidently control their data)

Table of Contents

• Bitcoin Emerges from Hydropower
• GMC: The Firewall of Special Economic Zones
• Capital Operations on the Steel Cable
• Insights for Emerging Markets

U.S. President Trump’s return to the White House has spurred deregulation, boosting the cryptocurrency market sentiment. On the National Day of the 17th, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan announced that 10,000 Bitcoins (about $1 billion) would be allocated from the national reserve as startup capital to create the “Gelephu Mindfulness City” (GMC). This amount accounts for about 40% of Bhutan’s GDP and nearly half of the country’s publicly held assets.

Bitcoin Emerges from Hydropower

Bhutan’s Bitcoin holdings are not purchased from the market but accumulated through “green mining” using surplus hydropower since 2019. Currently, Bhutan holds between 11,000 and 13,000 Bitcoins, ranking fifth globally. The king views this structure as a全民持股公司 (全民 shareholding company) and publicly emphasizes:

“All Bhutanese citizens are shareholders in this project.”

Driven by the Trump-fueled rally, Bitcoin surpassed $100,000, with the peak amplifying the asset’s leverage effect on the country’s transformation.

GMC: The Firewall of Special Economic Zones

Gelephu Mindfulness City is located in the southern Sarpang district, covering 2,500 square kilometers, about three times the size of Singapore. Data shows that the zone has an independent legal framework and administrative authority, designed by BIG Architecture, combining Mandala culture with green technology. The official goal is to create 100,000 high-value jobs by 2030 to alleviate youth outmigration. Bitcoin will be regarded as a financial reserve, providing capital backing to attract fintech, green energy, and Web3 companies.

Capital Operations on the Steel Cable

Using highly volatile assets as infrastructure carries significant risk. Bhutan adopts a sovereign fund-style management strategy, favoring collateralization, borrowing, and DeFi liquidity provision, generating cash flow without selling holdings. Since mining costs only include electricity and equipment depreciation, Bhutan’s tolerance for price fluctuations is higher than countries like El Salvador that require fiat currency to buy crypto.

Insights for Emerging Markets

The Bhutan model sketches a resource-dependent small country’s cycle of “Energy → Computing Power → Sovereign Capital → Real Economy.” GMC has received recognition from the Holcim Foundation Awards 2025; if subsequent connections to Southeast Asian trade corridors succeed, it will prove that small countries can reshape their economies with digital assets without relying on IMF or World Bank debt tools.

A $1 billion Bitcoin injection connects long-term Buddhist perspectives with the risk appetite of decentralized finance. Whether this gamble can retain the younger generation and sustain national happiness indicators will serve as a key case study for global sovereign wealth management in the next decade.

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