Bermuda Taps Stellar To Run Its Entire National Economy

The Stellar Development Foundation (@StellarOrg) and the Government of Bermuda have announced that Bermuda will begin moving key payment and financial services activity onto the Stellar ($XLM) network, marking the first operational milestone since the island unveiled its onchain ambitions at the World Economic Forum in January 2026.

The initiative is part of Bermuda's broader objective to become the world's first fully onchain national economy. The announcement builds on the regulatory foundation Bermuda established with its Digital Asset Business Act of 2018, one of the world's earliest comprehensive digital-asset regimes.

What Changes for Residents and Merchants

Bermudian residents will be able to receive wages, pay local merchants, settle government fees, and hold, send, and receive digital assets through digital wallets on the Stellar network. Government agencies expect to pilot stablecoin-based payments, financial institutions will be able to integrate tokenization tools, and digital assets may also be used for social service disbursements.

Local merchants currently pay 3 to 5 percent per transaction in card fees, with effective payment processing costs reaching as high as 10 percent in some categories. Premier E. David Burt has been direct about the economic case for change. "The lack of mobile money applications and reliance on legacy payments infrastructure has left Bermudians paying high payment processing fees and hindered additional economic growth opportunities," he said, adding that digital dollars and Stellar's capacity to support public sector initiatives make it possible "to deliver this responsibly and at the scale Bermuda requires."

Stellar's Track Record at Sovereign Scale

The network has supported sovereign and institutional deployments globally, including the Republic of the Marshall Islands' ENRA program, which in December 2025 delivered the world's first nationwide onchain disbursement of universal basic income via USDM1. Bermuda's program is more expansive, targeting the full breadth of a national payment economy rather than a single disbursement use case.

According to the Stellar Foundation, the network surpassed $2 billion in onchain real-world asset value in the first quarter of 2026. For $XLM holders, the practical impact will depend on measurable adoption: wallet creation, payment volume, and whether the token plays a meaningful role in the day-to-day system. If Stellar-based payments reduce fees while keeping transactions fast and compliant, Bermuda could provide blockchain payments with a more credible real-world use case than many earlier government experiments.

Sources:
Stellar Development Foundation Official Press Release via PR Newswire
Stellar.org: Stellar to Power Bermuda's Plan to Become World's First Fully Onchain Economy
The Royal Gazette: Premier Deepens Digital Finance Push