Bermuda Plans Stellar Migration for Payments

Bermuda's government announced plans Tuesday at the Digital Finance Forum to migrate select payment and financial services to the Stellar network, advancing its goal to become the world's first fully onchain national economy.

Premier David Burt stated that after completing risk assessments, the government is open to accepting and investing in digital assets. The initiative targets high transaction fees, which currently burden merchants with 3 to 5 percent charges and up to 10 percent in some sectors. Legacy payment systems and the absence of mobile money options have limited economic growth, Burt explained. "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. "The use of digital dollars can change that, and the Stellar network's capacity to support public sector initiatives are what make it possible to deliver this responsibly and at the scale Bermuda requires."

Stellar, a blockchain designed for fast, low-cost transactions across currencies and assets, will enable digital wallets for residents to receive salaries, pay...