Introduction.
The Polish zloty is about to get its third form – a regulated, blockchain-based e-money token fully compliant with MiCA. In May 2026, StaBillon plans to launch PLN DT, the first regulated stablecoin denominated in PLN. While the global crypto market obsesses over dollar-pegged tokens and the next DeFi narrative, a quiet but structurally significant development is taking place in Central Europe. For exporters, corporates, and institutions operating in the CEE region, this could be one of the most practical infrastructure upgrades in years.
Key points at a glance
- the pilot project for the digital zloty, approved by regulators, has the potential to become the standard for settlements
- reserves are attested every 24 hours, held in segregated accounts and protected from the issuer’s creditors
- the tokenised zloty enables cost reductions and fast settlements without the need to rebuild infrastructure
- at the beginning, the Polish zloty and the euro, and by the end of 2026, several other national currencies will be added
- a partnership with the national stock exchange gives the company access to the Polish capital market
- this is not just another dubious start-up, but a fully operational, regulated infrastructure, ready for use
E-money – the third form of money.
Most people still think of money as one thing. In reality, it exists in three distinct forms today.
- Cash is a direct liability of the National Bank of Poland.
- Bank deposits are liabilities of commercial banks – protected by the deposit guarantee scheme up to €100,000.
- An e-money token (EMT) under MiCA is different: each token is backed 1:1 by zloty held in a legally segregated bank account, protected from the issuer’s creditors. The holder has an unconditional right to redeem at par value at any time.
This is not just a technical distinction. It creates a fundamentally different risk architecture.
MiCA introduces new rules.
MiCA (the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation) regulates e-money tokens across the European Union. The list of legal EMT issuers includes over a dozen institutions from across the EU, but only one from Poland. This is StaBillon – a company with 100% Polish capital, operating under Polish regulatory supervision since 2019 and now fully compliant with MiCA.
PLN stablecoin and other currencies.
The global stablecoin market (tokens pegged 1:1 to a currency) is already worth over $300 billion. It is dominated by dollar-pegged tokens such as USDT and USDC. Euro-pegged stablecoins account for less than 1% of this market. Tokenised zlotys – until recently, 0%.
Meanwhile, Poland is one of the largest economies in the European Union, with a GDP of around $1 trillion and massive exports. The PLN is the largest currency outside the eurozone in the entire EU – and so far has no digital counterpart.
However, the tokenised zloty is not the end, but rather the starting point. A euro token will be launched in parallel with it, followed by other currencies. For companies operating in Central Europe, this means the ability to settle transactions in multiple local currencies simultaneously.
Poland’s position outside the eurozone (often seen as a disadvantage) has become a rare strategic advantage in the race to tokenize national currencies. While eurozone countries must wait for the ECB’s digital euro, Poland can already issue a regulated EMT through a private, licensed entity. This gives the country a meaningful head start in building practical, programmable money infrastructure for the CEE region.
B2B and programmable money: real-world applications.
The value of the PLN DT token remains fixed: 1 token = 1 zloty. What could such a stable zloty on the blockchain be useful for?
- Exporters can reduce settlement costs thanks to instant transactions without currency spreads. Money moves instantly and directly; it cannot get stuck somewhere between parties for several days.
- Banks can offer customers a modern, fast settlement layer without having to build it from scratch. They can also offer new products based on programmable payments.
- International corporations can provide funds to their domestic branches without purchasing local currencies and locking them in an account. This improves liquidity and increases control over dispersed finances.
- Construction firms can use conditional payments to secure outstanding payments. The funds are guaranteed, but will only be released once a given stage of work has been approved.
Tokenised money is no longer an exotic concept, something detached from traditional banking. Full integration with existing banking systems is possible. It is not a choice between the old and the new, but an extension of the existing infrastructure with features that were previously lacking.
There is also a lot happening outside Europe. A cooperation agreement has been signed with BEATOZ, a major Asian company and provider of payment infrastructure in South Korea. This is the first step towards Poland gaining a foothold in Asian markets.
The stock market enters the blockchain.
The tokenised zloty is entering the market. Proof of this is the tokenisation project being implemented by the Polish stock exchange.
Traditional settlement of share purchases or sales takes T+2 – two working days. The use of blockchain reduces this to seconds: securities and money are exchanged simultaneously, at any time of the day or night. The system operates as a complementary layer to the existing infrastructure, not a replacement for it.
Key Polish capital market institutions believe that DLT technology has the potential to simplify transactions through the use of atomic swaps, particularly in OTC transactions. This bodes well for the further tokenisation of securities.
Technical Deep Dive: how PLN DT works.
The PLN DT token is natively issued on the Billon Unified Blockchain – a DLT network where nodes are known and authorised, which is a regulatory requirement. At the same time, the token is available in the ERC-20 standard on the Ethereum network, and thanks to the Changechain mechanism and the LayerZero OFT protocol, it will be possible to transfer it to other networks. The multi-chain architecture ensures compatibility with a wide ecosystem of crypto wallets, DeFi protocols and exchanges.
The security mechanism is enforced by a smart contract. The minting (creation) of new tokens is automatically blocked if the reserve attestation is more than 24 hours old. Without a current confirmation of 1:1 coverage, the system will not issue any tokens.
The attestation is not dependent on the company, but is based on confirmations from the banks holding the reserves, which eliminates any conflict of interest. Furthermore, any discrepancy between the balance of ERC-20 tokens and internal records results in the immediate rejection of the transaction. The right to redeem a token cannot be suspended by the issuer, and compliance with AML and KYC rules guarantees transparency.
Reserves cover 100% of the value of tokens in circulation. The liquidity structure is two-tiered: a minimum of 70% consists of overnight instruments – liquid and deployable within a few hours. Importantly, the banks holding the reserves are institutions based in Poland and subject to national supervision.
Potential Problems with PLN DT.
Not all planned options are available today. Converting złoty from an account to tokens (on-ramp) is not yet available to individual users. Currently, access is through institutions with signed agreements, such as cryptocurrency exchanges.
Tokenized złoty will not be a means for everyday purchases in stores for now: mass adoption is several years away. It will also not replace a bank account for loans, deposits, or insurance.
Banks may not be interested in integrating PLN DT. While convenient for them, it means handing over the settlement layer to a fintech independent of the bank. And if large bank decided to launch their own stablecoin, PLN DT could lose recognition in the sector.
There are certain regulatory risks. Potentially, the authorities may tighten its stance on the reserve attestation model or group structure. New supervisory requirements could change the economics of this endeavor.
Competition may be a problem. For now, the Polish company remains the only regulated issuer of tokenized złoty. However, other institutions operate in Europe and may enter our market in the future. Circle (the issuer of USDC and EURC), SG-FORGE (the digital arm of Société Générale), and Monerium (a long-time tokenizer of currencies) may pose a particular threat.
The lack of a national cryptocurrency law remains a challenge. The entire project operates under MiCA, so it’s not formally hindered by this, but the lack of a law may discourage less knowledgeable business partners.
There is always a technical risk: bugs in smart contracts, infrastructure failures, or attacks on inter-chain bridges. Due to the centralized infrastructure, such risk is small, but not zero.
PLN DT vs. USDC
Let’s see how the tokenized złoty compares to the global payment standard – the tokenized dollar – from the perspective of a Polish entrepreneur.
Global dollar stablecoin (USDC)
USDC, provided by Circle, complies with the EU MiCA regulation.
It is reliably backed by dollars, and its undeniable strength lies in its enormous global liquidity. It is integrated with the payment network and DeFi ecosystem, making it a convenient tool for international trade.
From the perspective of a Polish entrepreneur, however, the fundamental drawback remains the constant exposure to the PLN/USD exchange rate risk, which can erode transaction profits. Furthermore, there are complex tax and accounting settlements, as well as conversion costs (spread).
Finally, dependence on US regulatory policy, which introduces an additional factor of uncertainty, may be a problem.
Tokenized Polish Zloty (PLN DT)
PLN DT is issued under the supervision of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, ensuring full compliance with national and EU MiCA law.
Its strengths include the absence of currency risk for Polish businesses and significant accounting simplification thanks to its 1:1 parity with the national currency. Other advantages include the transparency of reserves, which are subject to daily validation, and legal priority over all reserves in the event of the issuer’s bankruptcy, above the state guarantee limit.
However, building liquidity and the limited initial list of exchanges and DeFi platforms that support this standard remain challenges. The issuer’s equity capitalization is also relatively small. Although the reserves are legally separated, the compact scale of the company’s operations may raise concerns about its long-term operational resilience.
There is also a risk of regulatory officiousness; as the first project of its kind in Poland, PLN DT is under scrutiny by regulators.
What’s missing to make it perfect?
The technology is up and running, the MiCA regulations are already in force, and the final audit is nearing completion. The partnership with the Polish stock exchange has been formally signed, agreements with crypto exchanges and market makers are being finalised, and the collaboration with BEATOZ opens a potential door to Asian markets. The issuer has confirmed that the public launch of PLN DT is planned for May 2026 at the latest.
Given all this, one question naturally arises: why is the tokenised zloty still virtually absent from public discussion?
The answer is surprisingly simple – it is a matter of awareness. Most directors of export companies, corporate treasurers, law firms, and even many bankers who could benefit from this infrastructure have not yet registered that a regulated, programmable PLN stablecoin is about to become available in Poland.
Polish fintech is quietly demonstrating that traditional financial regulation can be successfully combined with blockchain technology. However, turning this technical and regulatory readiness into real-world adoption still requires a broader understanding of what is actually being built.
You don’t need blind faith in new technology. A cool-headed calculation is often enough. Part of the market will continue to rely on traditional bank transfers, accept their delays, and pay the associated fees. The more forward-looking players will use the PLN stablecoin to accelerate settlements, improve liquidity management, and meaningfully reduce costs. Those who grasp the implications early will likely secure a tangible competitive advantage.
Przemysław Żyliński
Sources:
https://e-rup.knf.gov.pl/?type=PSD_EMI
https://www.esma.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2024-12/EMTWP.csv
https://stabillon.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/ENG-White-Paper-Stabillon.pdf
https://stabillon.com/about-us/
https://www.cashless.pl/7544-bik-billon-trwaly-nosnik-blockchain
Bio:
The author is a blockchain analyst and writer, specialising in in-depth research to explore and understand crypto projects and blockchain solutions.
With a broad scope of work in the field, he explains the fundamentals of blockchain, creates knowledge bases and reports, and delivers high-quality expert articles. His work also includes analysing current trends, narratives, and regulations, as well as thoroughly examining projects, their tokenomics, and their strengths and weaknesses.
He has been active in the blockchain industry since 2020. Prior to that, he spent several years working in the media, primarily for global lifestyle magazines.
You can contact the author at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/przemyslaw-zylinski/