• The Istanbul Clearing, Settlement and Custody Bank has launched a blockchain-based system called BiGA Digital Gold

The Istanbul Clearing, Settlement and Custody Bank (Takasbank), which is based in Turkey, has launched a blockchain-based system called BiGA Digital Gold that can be used to issue, repay, and transfer digitized gold. Each unit of digital gold represents a gram of physical gold stored in the vaults of the Borsa Istanbul (BIST) stock exchange.

Essentially, the combination of blockchain technology and institutional gold custody makes it so gold can be transferred instantly and securely, solving one of the biggest problems of gold, which is its otherwise expensive to use gold as a currency since it needs to be physically sent. With BiGA, gold can now be sent worldwide in seconds. Further, blockchain technology is immutable, ensuring that no fraud or fake gold occurs in the system.

Several Turkish banks are already participating in the BiGA system, including state lenders Ziraat and Vakif, private lender Garanti BBVA, and private banks Albraka Turk and Kuveyt Turk.

If BiGA Digital Gold is successful, perhaps it will set a worldwide precedent for using blockchain technology to securely and digitally transfer any physical asset.

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