\*On May 25, 2026, Tether and the Government of Georgia announced the joint launch of GEL₮ - a stablecoin pegged to the Georgian lari. It marks one of the first times a national currency has been placed directly onto blockchain rails under a purpose-built government stablecoin framework.\*

What Is GEL₮

GEL₮ is a digital representation of the Georgian lari, issued by Tether with the backing of the Georgian government and the National Bank of Georgia.

The token is pegged 1:1 to the lari and required by law to maintain 100% reserve backing - a condition set by NBG Order No. 52/04, passed in March 2026. One critical distinction: GEL₮ is not a CBDC. It is a privately issued stablecoin by Tether, operating under central bank supervision.

The key features described at launch:

? Near-instant settlement instead of multi-day bank transfers

? Lower transaction costs for domestic and cross-border payments

? Programmable payment functionality

? Integration with Georgia's existing banking infrastructure

The specific blockchains on which GEL₮ will be issued have not yet been disclosed. Further structural details and a launch timeline will be announced at a later stage.

Why This Matters for Georgia

Georgia has been steadily building its reputation as a regional hub for digital assets. The country already permits tax payments through instant conversion of digital assets into lari, and in March 2026 it passed a comprehensive stablecoin regulatory framework.

The critical detail: Georgia's legislation has been explicitly designed for compatibility with the U.S. GENIUS Act - the stablecoin bill currently moving through the Senate. This positions Georgia among the earliest countries actively pursuing regulatory interoperability with the evolving U.S. digital asset framework.

"Together with visionary partners like Tether, Georgia is laying the foundations for a more connected, transparent, and digitally empowered financial world." \* Irakli Kobakhidze, Prime Minister of Georgia "The National Bank of Georgia welcomes collaboration with global innovators like Tether as part of its broader strategy to advance secure, modern, and internationally aligned digital financial infrastructure." \* Natia Turnava, President of the National Bank of Georgia

What This Means for Tether

For Tether, GEL₮ is the next step in a broader strategy of expanding beyond the dollar-pegged USDT into national currency markets.

The company has attempted this before: MXNT (Mexican peso, active since May 2022), EURT (euro, wound down in November 2025 due to European regulatory shifts), and USAT (U.S. dollar, officially launched in early 2026). GEL₮ continues the playbook of building local-currency stablecoin infrastructure in jurisdictions that provide clear legal frameworks.

The market context is significant. USDT's market capitalization is approaching $190 billion, with 24-hour trading volumes that regularly exceed those of Visa and Mastercard. GEL₮ represents a bet that stablecoins will become the infrastructure layer not just for crypto markets, but for mainstream finance in individual nations.

"Stablecoins are no longer a niche financial instrument. They are becoming part of the infrastructure layer for global finance. Georgia has moved early to create serious regulatory architecture for digital assets and stablecoins, and that clarity creates the foundation for real innovation and adoption." \* Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether

Context: Stablecoins as the New Financial Infrastructure

The GEL₮ launch comes as the broader stablecoin market accelerates rapidly. Monthly adjusted on-chain stablecoin transaction volume hit $7.6 trillion in April 2026. Ripple projects that figure will exceed $33 trillion by the end of 2026, while Chainalysis estimates the market could reach $719 trillion in annual volume by 2035 through organic growth alone.

Against that backdrop, governments worldwide face a choice: watch as private stablecoins displace traditional banking transfers, or actively participate in building the new infrastructure. Georgia has chosen the second path.

"In partnership with Tether, the global leader in digital assets and stablecoin innovation, Georgia has the opportunity to become a strategic bridge between traditional finance and the digital economy of the future." \* Vakhtang Turnava, Member of the Parliament of Georgia

What Remains Unknown

Despite the scale of the announcement, significant details have been withheld. Tether has not disclosed:

? The specific blockchains on which GEL₮ will be issued

? An exact launch date

? The composition and management structure of the reserves

? The mechanism for integration with Georgia's banking system

All of these, the company says, will be announced at a later stage.

The Bottom Line

GEL₮ is not just another stablecoin. It is a precedent: the first major attempt by a sovereign government and the largest stablecoin issuer to jointly migrate a national currency onto blockchain rails under a legislatively anchored model. Whether this becomes a functioning payment system or remains a well-crafted press release will be decided by the implementation - which has yet to come.