TLDR
- Israel approved BILS, a shekel-pegged stablecoin issued by licensed crypto firm Bits of Gold.
- The BILS stablecoin was approved after a two-year pilot program conducted on Solana.
- BILS reserves will be held in Israel through designated and separate accounts.
- The token will support real-time payments, on-chain trading and programmable finance.
- Israel’s approval comes as regulators tighten stablecoin, custody and crypto licensing rules.
Israel has approved the launch of a shekel-pegged stablecoin by Bits of Gold, giving the local digital asset sector a regulated token tied directly to the national currency.
The Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Authority granted approval for the BILS stablecoin after a two-year pilot program on the Solana blockchain. Bits of Gold, a licensed financial asset service provider, will issue the token under close regulatory supervision.
The approval allows a limited launch at a predetermined scale. The stablecoin will be backed by reserves held in Israel in designated and separate accounts, with rules covering liquidity, redemption, and regulatory reporting.
BILS Stablecoin Gets Limited Approval
BILS is designed to maintain a one-to-one peg with the Israeli shekel. The token will allow users to make real-time payments, trade on-chain, and build programmable financial applications using a regulated local currency.
Bits of Gold founder and CEO Youval Rouach said the stablecoin creates a direct link between the shekel and the global digital asset economy. The company has presented BILS as a tool for users and businesses that want blockchain-based transactions without relying only on dollar-pegged tokens.
The launch comes as dollar-backed stablecoins continue to dominate the global market. The total stablecoin market value has moved above $320 billion, with Tether’s USDT and other U.S. dollar-pegged assets holding most of the sector’s activity.
A shekel-backed stablecoin gives Israel a local-currency option in a market where most trading pairs and payment tools are still tied to the dollar.
Israel Expands Crypto Oversight
The approval is part of wider work by Israeli authorities to regulate digital asset activity. The Israel Tax Authority and Finance Ministry have been advancing policies that define how crypto businesses, stablecoins, brokers, custodians, and service providers operate under local rules.
Israel’s regulatory approach has focused on licensing, consumer protection, reserve controls, anti-money laundering rules, and counter-terrorist financing standards. Authorities have also increased scrutiny of crypto wallets and transactions linked to illegal finance.
The BILS approval, however, does not create open permission for all stablecoin activity. The launch remains limited and supervised, with the regulator setting conditions for how funds are held, how users redeem tokens, and how the issuer reports activity.
The structure places reserve management at the center of the project. Holding backing assets in Israel through separate accounts is intended to keep customer funds apart from company assets and support redemption claims.
Digital Shekel Work Continues
The stablecoin approval also arrives as the Bank of Israel continues work on its Digital Shekel project. The central bank has been testing whether a central bank digital currency could operate in the local economy and support future payment systems.
BILS differs from a central bank digital currency because it is issued by a private licensed company rather than the central bank. Both projects, however, show that Israeli authorities are examining digital payment systems under formal oversight.
The shekel has also strengthened against the U.S. dollar, trading around 0.34 dollars per shekel at the time of the approval. That currency backdrop gives the launch added attention among market participants watching local-currency digital assets.
Israel’s approval of BILS as a result places the country among markets testing regulated stablecoin models tied to domestic currencies. The project will now move forward under restricted conditions as regulators monitor its use, reserves, and role in local crypto activity.
