Bhutan Pledges 10,000 BTC to Back ‘Mindfulness City’; No Sell-Off Planned
King Wangchuck commits ~$865M in Bitcoin to fund the Gelephu project, utilizing a ‘collateral and yield’ strategy that keeps the supply off the open market.
King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck announced on December 17 that the Kingdom of Bhutan will allocate up to 10,000 Bitcoin from its sovereign reserves to fund the Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC). The directive, delivered during the monarch’s National Day address, earmarks nearly $865 million in digital assets to collateralize the development of the country’s new Special Administrative Region.
Why it matters: This is a sovereign execution of the “pristine collateral” thesis. Unlike El Salvador, which buys spot, Bhutan mined its stack using hydroelectric surpluses. Now, instead of liquidating the asset to pay for concrete, the Kingdom intends to leverage the capital, preserving the underlying Bitcoin while generating yield to finance infrastructure.
The Strategy: Collateral, Not Cash-Out
The 10,000 BTC pledge represents the bulk of the estimated 12,500 BTC currently tracked by Arkham Intelligence in Bhutan’s state-owned wallets. Crucially, officials confirmed the strategy involves “collateralization and risk-managed yield generation” rather than immediate market selling.
“As your King, I must ensure that every Bhutanese is a custodian, stakeholder, and beneficiary of GMC. This commitment is for our people, our youth, and our nation.” — King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
The Gelephu Mindfulness City is designed as a semi-autonomous economic hub on the Indian border, targeting fintech, green energy, and digital asset firms with a distinct regulatory framework.
The Druk Holding Edge
The allocation will be managed by Druk Holding & Investments (DHI), the commercial arm of the Royal Government. DHI has quietly built one of the world’s largest state-owned mining operations since 2019, leveraging the Himalayas’ renewable hydropower.
Markets reacted with indifference to the volume, as the structure suggests the Bitcoin will remain off-market. BTC hovered at $86,500 following the speech, absorbing the news as a long-term supply lock rather than a liquidation event.
