Diya Poddar
The Philippines could soon become the first country in the world to manage its entire national budget on a blockchain.
Senator Bam Aquino announced the idea at the Manila Tech Summit on Wednesday, highlighting a proposal to log and publish the country’s $95 billion budget in a way that allows every citizen to monitor government spending in real time.
The move, if implemented, would mark a dramatic shift in fiscal transparency, bringing government finance into the same decentralised digital frameworks currently used in cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based assets.
Aquino outlines blockchain plan at Manila Tech Summit
Senator Aquino explained that the push for blockchain adoption in government finances is centred on transparency and accountability.
He told the Manila Tech Summit audience that every step of public spending could be logged and viewed, with no space for hidden adjustments.
Aquino added that this would make the Philippines the first nation to take such a step, though he admitted uncertainty about whether the plan would gain enough political support to move forward.
His comments underline the growing role of blockchain in governance, moving beyond private industry into public finance.
Blockchain already tested in government systems
While the idea of transferring the entire national budget to blockchain is new, the Philippines has already experimented with the technology.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) recently launched a blockchain platform on Polygon to publish Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs) and Notices of Cash Allocation (NCAs).
This system is powered by BayaniChain, a local blockchain firm, and already provides a basis for extending the use of decentralised ledgers to larger parts of government.
BayaniChain has emphasised that blockchain cannot eliminate corruption on its own but does make accountability far more difficult to avoid.
The proposed budget integration would build on these early applications, potentially scaling from specific fiscal documents to a fully transparent, public-facing budget ledger.
Global governments explore blockchain for transparency
The Philippines is not the only nation looking at blockchain for governance.
Just one day before Aquino’s announcement, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed that his department will begin publishing economic data, including GDP figures, on-chain under the Trump administration’s ongoing pro-crypto agenda.
This alignment of announcements suggests a broader global trend in which blockchain technology is being adopted not only for financial transactions but also for transparency and trust in government data.
Challenges ahead for full budget adoption
Despite the ambition, Aquino noted that political will remains the largest hurdle.
Moving an entire $95 billion national budget onto blockchain would require scaling the existing system, adapting it for complex budgetary processes, and ensuring security and accessibility.
If successful, however, the Philippines would create a landmark example of how blockchain can reshape governance, showing how technology can be used beyond crypto markets to improve public oversight of national funds.
The initiative, though still in its early stages, reflects both a technological opportunity and a governance challenge that could redefine how fiscal responsibility is handled in the digital age.
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