Vitalik Goes to Bhutan — Where Ethereum Just Became a National Standard

Bhutan is now the first country to use the Ethereum network to operate a national digital identity system.

Ethereum Foundation head Aya Miyaguchi confirmed the news on her X account, stating that she attended the launch ceremony for Bhutan’s National Digital Identity (NDI) system.

Why Bhutan Is Adopting Ethereum for Its NDI

The Ethereum-based identity system is now fully operational. All authentication information will be migrated by the first quarter of 2026.

Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, Prime Minister Lyonchen Tshering Tobgay, and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin attended the launch ceremony, among others.

Prime Minister Tobgay said the nation has set a new milestone in becoming a leader in digital governance by launching NDI on Ethereum. He explained that the goal was to leverage Ethereum’s globally distributed, decentralized infrastructure. This would enhance Bhutan’s key systems’ security, transparency, and availability.

He added that the milestone underscores the country’s vision to create an interoperable, user-owned identity system. This system will connect Bhutan to the global ecosystem and support the King’s vision for a safe, inclusive, and digitally empowered society.

Global Leader in Digital Assets

Miyaguchi emphasized that the integration of Ethereum is a world first. She stated that “this milestone marks not only a national achievement but a global step toward a more open and secure digital future for the long term.”

After its 2023 election, Bhutan’s NDI became the world’s first and only national system to provide self-sovereign identity (SSI) to its entire population. The country had been operating its identity system on the Polygon network since August last year, after using Hyperledger Indy. The shift to Ethereum was a decision to enhance transparency, immutability, and privacy.

The Bhutanese government aims to migrate its entire NDI platform to Ethereum by early 2026. Once the platform is complete, citizens can use cryptographic proof for authentication instead of traditional ID checks. This will allow them to prove specific things about themselves without revealing their personal information.

Bhutan has recently been accelerating the adoption of digital assets. The country directly mines Bitcoin using its hydropower plants and currently holds 11,286 Bitcoin, worth approximately $1.31 billion. This makes Bhutan the fifth-largest national holder of Bitcoin after the US, China, the UK, and Ukraine.