Afghanistan, Tunisia, and Uzbekistan are set to race each other to become the first nation to issue a sovereign Bitcoin bond, according to the Asia Times.
The news was announced at the annual Spring Meeting of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund held in Washington between April 4 and April 14.
Khalil Sediq, governor at the Central Bank of Afghanistan, told the Asia Times that the country is considering issuing a sovereign Bitcoin bond.
If it does, the bond will be issued through blockchain technology as a tool to raise $5.7 billion in private-sector investment for the country’s mining, energy, and agriculture sectors.
He went on to discuss how Bitcoin could be coupled with a type of metals future – such as lithium – and commented on the value of Afghanistan’s mineral reserves, which are estimated at more than $3 trillion.
Afghanistan is set to become the world’s largest miner of lithium – which is currently in-demand across the world thanks to the popularity of lithium-ion batteries.
However, the country is currently facing severe restrictions on non-concessionary borrowing, so the issuance of a cryptocurrency could offer a means for access to international markets through Hyperledger’s blockchain tech.
Banque Centrale de Tunisie governor Marouane El Abassi also spoke at the Spring Meeting, where he claimed the North African nation is seriously contemplating and studying the concept of a sovereign Bitcoin bond.
Though Afghanistan and Tunisia could well face new competition from Uzbekistan, which sent a high-level delegate to the IMF World Bank event to study Bitcoin and blockchain.
The delegate suggested Uzbekistan should not be counted out of the race to be the first to issue a sovereign Bitcoin bond, according to reports.
An Uzbek sovereign Bitcoin bond could be combined with the cotton futures market – since Uzbekistan is the world’s fifth-largest producer of cotton.
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