Bhutan Pioneers Ethereum-Based National Identity System with Over 200,000 Users

Bhutan's National Digital Identification Enters a New Era Bhutan’s National Digital Identification (NDI) system is set to migrate from the Polygon blockchain to Ethereum, aiming to enhance security, scalability, and performance, according to the country’s national ￰0￱ NDI project was first unveiled in 2021, with the national launch taking place in October ￰1￱ the launch, Crown Prince Gyalsey Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck became Bhutan’s first official “digital citizen.” By March 2025, over 200,000 users had received their digital identifiers, with the system introducing services such as bank account creation and secure eKYC ￰2￱ Benefits of the NDI System The NDI system offers a variety of user-friendly features: A single identity document (Foundational ID) with user-controlled disclosure Login- and password-free access to partner services Legal protection under the NDI Act 2023 Embedded digital signature All these functionalities are accessible through a mobile app, supported by institutions including Bank of Bhutan (mBOB) and ￰3￱ Ethereum Was Chosen Built on W3C standards (DID/Verifiable Credentials), the system migrated to Polygon in August 2024.

However, for improved scalability and reliability, Druk Holding and Investments, a company involved in NDI’s development, recommended Ethereum. “Switching to Ethereum further strengthens the security of our digital ￰4￱ is one of the most decentralized blockchains globally, making it highly resistant to ￰5￱ transition ensures both security and stability,” said Jigme Tenzing, Secretary of the GovTech ￰6￱ move is also expected to attract active blockchain participants to ￰7￱ Ethereum Foundation, which supports blockchain development, endorsed the ￰8￱ President Aya Miyaguchi and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin attended the migration ceremony on October 13, ￰9￱ is now the first country to implement a fully Ethereum-based digital identity ￰10￱ migration is expected to be completed by early ￰11￱ continues to embrace cryptocurrency and blockchain ￰12￱ June 2025, authorities announced the integration of cryptocurrency payment options at tourist attractions through a partnership with Binance.