Philippines to Propose Blockchain-Based National Budget for Transparency

According to Cointelegraph, Philippine Senator Bam Aquino has announced plans to introduce a bill aimed at storing the country's national budget on a blockchain platform. This initiative is intended to enhance transparency in government financial transactions. Aquino revealed his intentions in a Facebook post, stating that he plans to file the bill within the next few weeks. The proposed measures would integrate the government's budget and transactions into a blockchain system, ensuring that every peso is accounted for and visible to the public. During the Manila Tech Summit 2025, Aquino discussed the potential of technology to improve governance accountability. He emphasized the role of blockchain technology in achieving this goal, highlighting its ability to provide transparent and accountable budgeting. Aquino's statements were also reported by local TV news channel Bilyonaryo, underscoring the growing interest in blockchain technology within the Philippines. This move is part of a broader trend of blockchain adoption in the country. In July, the Philippine government launched a blockchain-based document validation system on the Polygon network, despite a partial outage on the same day. This development was supported by the Blockchain Council of the Philippines (BCP), which has been working with the Department of Information and Communications Technology to promote blockchain adoption through a state partnership since 2023. BCP founder Donald Lim expressed confidence in the Philippines' potential to become a leading blockchain hub in Asia. Globally, government adoption of blockchain technology is on the rise, driven by the need for transparency and immutable records. In the United States, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced plans to publish economic statistics, including GDP data, on blockchain. This follows previous initiatives in the US, such as tokenizing property deeds in New Jersey and exploring blockchain's role in protecting voter records in New York. Similar efforts are underway in other countries, including India and Vietnam, where blockchain is being used to digitize land records and verify digital transactions, respectively. These examples highlight the increasing recognition of blockchain's potential to enhance transparency and efficiency in government operations.