The World Gold Council (WGC) has announced the preparation of a pilot project for the implementation of digital gold. This new tool will allow the use of the precious metal in fractional parts for banking transactions and as collateral for financial operations.
This is reported by Business • Media
PGI Pilot Project: New Opportunities for the Gold Market
The testing of a tool called PGI (pooled gold interests) will begin in London in the first quarter of 2026. Leading banks and traders will be invited to participate, gaining the opportunity to buy and sell shares of physical gold stored in segregated accounts.
WGC Executive Director David Tait emphasized that digitizing bullion will enable banks to more actively use gold on their balance sheets to cover margin requirements and generate additional profits. The project envisions shared ownership of real gold among a group of key market participants.
“Digitizing bullion will allow gold to be used on banks’ balance sheets to cover margin requirements and attract additional profits,” noted David Tait.
Digitalization of the Market and Implementation Prospects
The launch of PGI will continue a multi-year program of digitalization in the gold market, which the WGC is implementing together with the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA). In January 2025, they launched the Gold Bar Integrity blockchain database to track the provenance of bars and enhance industry transparency.
However, some experts are skeptical about the prospects of the new tool. BullionVault’s research director Adrian Ash believes that gold is already a reliable asset and does not require additional digital formats. At the same time, the WGC hopes that the digital model will increase the market’s attractiveness for institutional investors, create a new type of transactions, and enhance the liquidity of gold assets.
Despite the significant rise in gold prices, most assets remain passive. The introduction of digital bullion, according to the WGC, will help make the market more efficient and enable competition with cryptocurrencies and gold-backed stablecoins. According to David Tait, this step will lay the foundation for creating a new standard for the use of gold in the global financial system.