Bhutan’s GMC puts part of its bitcoin treasury to work after 10,000 BTC pledge

Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC), a special administrative region in southern Bhutan, awarded 3iQ Corp. a mandate to manage part of its bitcoin BTC$63,607.21 treasury, the firms said in an email.

GMC declined to disclose the size of the mandate to CoinDesk.

How the money will be run is the new information. GMC told CoinDesk it selected the Toronto-based company to generate long-term returns through a low-risk, market-neutral investment approach, meaning the reserve is to be deployed for yield rather than simply held.

A market-neutral strategy covers a range of possibilities, including basis trades and lending. Such strategies usually yield at least 5% annually in the general market. GMC did not say whether any specific approach has been selected.

In December, when Bhutan’s king, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, pledged up to 10,000 BTC, then worth about $1 billion, the allocation was called a long-term national asset for the city’s development, with collateralization, treasury strategies or holding all listed as options still under consideration.

The mandate’s size matters because the pledge behind it has been in question for months.

CoinDesk reported in May that Ujjwal Deep Dahal, CEO of the government’s commercial arm, Druk Holdings, said he did not recall the last time the company sold any bitcoin, disputing onchain data showing roughly $1 billion had left wallets attributed to it. Neither GMC nor 3iQ has said where the bitcoin under management comes from.

Asked what Bhutan gets beyond asset management, GMC pointed to employment for Bhutanese youth and skills development in technology and finance, and said the specific programs are still being worked through.