Tajikistan to Roll Out Gold ATMs Allowing Card Purchases and Buybacks
Tajikistan’s central bank plans to launch gold ATMs this year that let customers buy physical gold bars directly using payment cards and, at selected machines, sell gold back. The service aims to simplify purchases by removing queues and paperwork; gold ATMs already operate in the UAE and South Korea, typically in airports and malls. Since 2017, gold bars have been sold at the central bank’s Dushanbe headquarters and commercial banks. The central bank governor reported that in 2025 Tajik institutions sold about 200 kg of gold bars worth roughly $23.74 million, with retail savers being the main buyers who view gold as a savings instrument. The initiative targets convenience and broader retail access to physical gold.
Neutral
The announcement is primarily a domestic retail convenience measure for physical gold distribution and does not directly involve cryptocurrencies, blockchain tokenization, or major monetary policy shifts. For crypto markets, the impact is likely neutral: gold ATMs may slightly increase local demand for physical gold (a traditional safe-haven), but the reported volumes (about 200 kg in 2025, ~$23.7M) are small relative to global precious-metals and crypto market sizes. Traders might see a minor shift in local asset preferences — retail savers allocating some funds to gold — but there is no clear channel to affect crypto liquidity, price discovery, or DeFi activity. Historically, localized initiatives expanding physical gold access (e.g., gold vending in malls/airports) have not produced meaningful moves in crypto markets. Short-term: negligible reaction expected. Long-term: if similar programs scale substantially or combine with digital gold tokenization, there could be modest competitive pressure on gold-pegged stablecoins or tokenized RWA products, but current news does not indicate such a development.