Bermuda’s Bold Bet: Coinbase and Circle Drive ’Fully On-chain’ Economy with Stablecoin Surge

Bermuda isn't just dipping its toes—it's diving headfirst into the digital deep end. The island nation is making a calculated, high-stakes wager on a future where every transaction, contract, and asset lives on the blockchain. No intermediaries, no legacy rails, just pure cryptographic settlement.

The Crypto Cavalry Arrives

Leading the charge? Heavyweights Coinbase and Circle. Their play isn't about launching another speculative token; it's about cementing the plumbing. By pushing their respective stablecoins, they're providing the essential, dollar-pegged grease for the gears of this new economy. Think of it as digital dollar infrastructure, deployed offshore.

Why Bermuda? Why Now?

The jurisdiction gets it. While other regulators drag their feet, Bermuda's Financial Services Authority has built a framework that actually understands crypto-native operations. It's a regulatory sandbox with real teeth and a clear vision. For projects wanting to build without one hand tied behind their back, it's becoming a beacon.

This move cuts out traditional finance's bloated middlemen and bypasses geographic limitations. A 'fully on-chain' economy means 24/7 settlement, transparent ledgers, and programmable money. It turns the island into a global node, not just a tourist destination.

The finance jab? Wall Street is still trying to figure out how to short a blockchain while these guys are building a new one on top of it.

The ultimate bet is that sovereignty in the digital age won't be about land mass, but about network adoption. Bermuda aims to be the capital.

In the case of Bermuda, which is a small island economy comprising about 65,000 residents, the push is a long-standing struggle with conventional financial rails.

Like most of the Caribbean jurisdictions, merchants and institutions are frequently charged high fees, have little access to onshore banking partners, and have slow settlement times as a result of de-risking by global banks.

The government reports that such frictions have been a burden on the competitiveness and margins, especially for small and medium-sized businesses.

The proposed on-chain framework is intended to bypass some of those constraints by relying on dollar-denominated stablecoins and blockchain-based settlement instead of correspondent banking networks.

Bermuda Pushes USDC Into Daily Commerce With Coinbase-Backed Pilot

Under the partnership, Bermuda will work with Circle’s USDC stablecoin and Coinbase’s Base infrastructure to pilot stablecoin-based payments across government agencies, financial institutions, and local businesses.

The first phase will focus on payments, tokenization tools for financial institutions, and nationwide digital literacy programs designed to help residents understand and safely use digital finance products.

Burt said the goal is to create opportunity and ensure Bermudians benefit directly from changes in the global financial system.

We’re taking Bermuda’s economy onchain@BermudaPremier @jerallaire https://t.co/lDqFUIb9qe pic.twitter.com/QGLzaI5VNw

The announcement builds on groundwork laid years earlier when Bermuda introduced the Digital Asset Business Act in 2018, overseen by the Bermuda Monetary Authority.

Since then, more than 40 digital asset firms have been licensed or admitted into regulatory sandboxes overseen by the Bermuda Monetary Authority.

Coinbase and Circle were among the earliest global firms approved under the regime, and Coinbase currently operates a derivatives platform from Bermuda for non-U.S. users.

Momentum picked up further in 2025 at the Bermuda Digital Finance Forum, where the government, Coinbase, and Circle tested real-world adoption through an on-chain USDC airdrop.

Attendees received 100 USDC, which could be spent with newly onboarded local merchants.

The government noted that the experiment led to more Bermudian businesses accepting digital payments and deeper engagement from local financial institutions.

Officials say those efforts will expand at the Bermuda Digital Finance Forum 2026, scheduled for May, with broader business participation and a larger consumer stimulus component.

Bermuda Frames USDC as a Commerce Upgrade

USDC is a fundamental component of the strategy, as it is fully pegged to dollar-based reserves, and merchants can take payments through fast and low-cost methods without the risk of changes in the prices of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.

Some Bermudian companies are already paying in USDC, and the government believes it is a means to have the modernized deal and remain tied to the U.S. dollar.

The project will be voluntary, and no resident or business is obliged to use on-chain tools, and the collaboration with Coinbase and Circle is not exclusive.

Instead, the strategy is framed as an incremental transition, with education programs and incentives designed to encourage uptake over time.

Officials see on-chain infrastructure as a way to strengthen that position while opening access to global capital markets for local firms.

In the country, there is no income or capital gains tax on digital assets, and the government has taken a compliance-first approach that emphasizes licensing, audits, and reserve requirements for stablecoin issuers.