According to this plan, testing of the digital som in pilot mode will begin in the fourth quarter of 2026 and will last until the second quarter of 2027.
During this period, the creation of a platform for the digital som is planned, as well as testing of P2P transfers, which involve making transfers without intermediaries.
As for the KGST stablecoin, its issuance is scheduled for the period from the first quarter of 2026 to the third quarter of 2027. It is expected that this stablecoin will be pegged to the national currency at a rate of 1:1.
Additional information:
According to the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan (NBKR), the issuer of the digital som will be this regulator. In the appendix to the draft law, the Central Bank clarified that the digital som will not replace cash or non-cash money, but will become an additional third form of currency.
The NBKR plans to conduct testing of the digital som in three stages. The first stage includes issuance, creation of a digital wallet, and testing among NBKR employees. The second stage will involve connecting the Central Treasury to the digital som platform and test payments of marked digital soms within social programs. The third stage envisages the possibility of offline payments, setting limits on amounts, and using QR code and Bluetooth technologies for transactions.
According to the NBKR's plans, citizens will be able to credit digital soms to their wallets and use them on smartphones, including in offline mode. Individuals and legal entities will have the opportunity to freely convert their funds from one form to another, for example, from cash soms to digital ones.
Stablecoins are crypto assets that aim to maintain a stable value relative to a specific asset or group of assets. Unlike other crypto assets, the main goal of issuing a stablecoin is to maintain a fixed parity with a specific currency.
