Kyrgyzstan Shuts Down $50M Gold-Backed USDKG Stablecoin After UK Sanctions

TLDR

• Kyrgyzstan has ordered the liquidation of USDKG issuer EVA and state-owned Coin Nomad Exchange.
• USDKG holders can email the project to exchange tokens for fiat money or USDT, but no deadline has been set.
• Britain sanctioned the USDKG issuer in May under its Russia sanctions program.
• USDKG still trades near $1, with 50 million tokens listed in circulation.
• Coin Nomad’s creditor claims window closes around Oct. 14, 2026.

Kyrgyzstan has shut down its gold-backed USDKG stablecoin less than a year after it launched. The government ordered the liquidation of the token’s issuer and the country’s state-owned crypto exchange.

The official USDKG website said the project is ending under Cabinet of Ministers Order No. 639-t, dated Aug. 20. The closure covers its activities on blockchain networks.

The order said the steps were taken to improve state participation in commercial companies and better manage state assets.

According to local outlet Akchabar, the order told the Finance Ministry to liquidate OJSC EVA, the renamed USDKG issuer, and OJSC Coin Nomad Exchange. USDKG itself is not named in the order.

How USDKG Holders Can Redeem Their Tokens

Holders can contact [email protected] to swap their tokens for fiat money or USDT. The notice does not give a deadline, list which fiat currencies are available or explain verification steps.

USDKG entered circulation in November 2025. It was pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar and issued by a company owned by Kyrgyzstan’s Ministry of Finance. It first launched on Tron, with Ethereum support added later.

A review by Kreston Global found 30 gold bars weighing about 376 kilograms backing the token. The gold was valued at $50.3 million, enough to cover the first 50 million tokens.

CoinGecko showed USDKG trading at about $1.00 at the time of checking. It listed 50 million tokens in circulation and 24-hour trading volume near $22,955 on Uniswap V3 and Curve.

It is not clear how many of those tokens will be redeemed during the liquidation.

UK Sanctions Hit the USDKG Issuer in May

Britain sanctioned the issuer, OJSC Virtual Asset Issuer, on May 26 under its Russia sanctions program. The UK said there were “reasonable grounds to suspect” the company had supported or benefited from Russia’s government.

The measures included an asset freeze, trust-services limits, director disqualification and internet-services sanctions. The notice did not say USDKG was used to process sanctions-evasion payments.

Two days later, the company was re-registered as OJSC EVA, according to Akchabar. No official reason has been given for the name change.

The sanctions also hit trading. OSL HK listed USDKG for professional investors on May 21, then stopped all USDKG services on May 27.

Coin Nomad Exchange, Kyrgyzstan’s first state-owned crypto exchange, was registered in December 2024. Its sole shareholder, the Finance Ministry, approved voluntary liquidation on Sept. 3.

Akchabar reported the exchange posted a net profit of 1.47 million Kyrgyz soms in the first half of 2026. However, its operating business made a loss, and it was behind on some tax payments.

Separately, the U.S. Treasury designated the Russia-linked A7 Network as a transnational criminal organization on Oct. 1. That action did not name USDKG or EVA.

Coin Nomad’s liquidation notice gave creditors one month from Sept. 14 to file claims. That window closes around Oct. 14, 2026, while USDKG redemption requests still have no final date.

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