Cryptocurrency company Tether and the government of Georgia have announced a joint initiative to introduce GEL₮, a stablecoin pegged to the Georgian Lari. The token is described as a digital representation of the national currency, designed to enable lower transaction costs, near-instantaneous settlement, programmable payments, and more efficient value transfer within digital financial systems. The initiative is intended to support cross-border trade, fintech development, digital payments, and broader access to programmable financial infrastructure in Georgia and the wider region.
Further details on the structure, launch timeline, reserve composition, and regulatory implementation of GEL₮ have not yet been disclosed and will be announced at a later date.
An unusual issuance model
The arrangement is structurally notable in that GEL₮ will not be issued solely by the National Bank of Georgia, as would be the case with a central bank digital currency (CBDC), but by a private company operating in partnership with a national government. This places GEL₮ in a distinct category: an officially endorsed stablecoin issued by a private entity rather than a monetary authority, with the Lari as its reference currency.
Tether is best known as the issuer of USD₮, the world's largest stablecoin by market capitalisation, which the company reports at close to USD 190 billion. USD₮ is backed by a combination of cash, debt securities, corporate bonds, and other US dollar-denominated assets. Tether relocated its headquarters to El Salvador in 2024. The daily trading volume of USD₮ regularly exceeds that of major card networks.
Stablecoins have seen growing adoption for payment processing, remittances, and cross-border transactions, where they offer near-instant settlement compared to the multi-day timelines associated with traditional correspondent banking infrastructure.
Regulatory framing and regional positioning
Tether highlighted Georgia's regulatory environment as a key factor in the partnership. The company's statement noted that Georgia's digital asset framework has been designed to be largely compatible with emerging US stablecoin regulation, including the GENIUS Act, a piece of US federal legislation currently advancing through Congress that would establish a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. Tether described Georgia as one of the first countries to seek direct regulatory interoperability with the evolving US framework.
The National Bank of Georgia, whose president Natia Turnava welcomed the collaboration, framed the initiative as part of a broader strategy to develop a secure, modern, and internationally oriented digital financial infrastructure. Georgia has in recent years positioned itself as a digitally progressive jurisdiction for financial services, having required virtual asset service providers to register and comply with AML and KYC standards since 2023.
No launch date has been confirmed.
