The Bank of Lithuania (LCB) has issued its digital collector coin LBCOIN. Based on state-of-the-art IT solutions, this is not only the first digital coin issued by a central bank in the euro area, but also across the world, the LCB said on July 23.

LBCOIN is dedicated to Lithuania’s 1918 Act of Independence and its 20 signatories.

“The digital coin is a striking illustration of what we have achieved in just a few years following our strategic decision to take a firm path towards financial and payment innovation. It serves as a bridge that brings together classical numismatics and rapidly evolving financial technologies. I have no doubt that LBCOIN will strengthen Lithuania’s role as the regional fintech hub,”Vitas Vasiliauskas, chairman of the board of the Bank of Lithuania, is quoted in a press release.

The blockchain-based LBCOIN consists of six digital tokens and one physical collector coin. The Bank of Lithuania has issued 4,000 LBCOINs, i.e. 24,000 digital tokens and 4,000 silver collector coins. Each token features one of the 20 signatories of the Act of Independence and belongs to one of the six signatory categories (priests, presidents, diplomats, industrialists, academics, municipal servants) with 4,000 tokens allotted to each of them.

Having purchased LBCOIN, collectors will get six randomly selected digital tokens which they will be able to exchange for a physical collector coin, store at the LBCOIN e-shop, send as a gift, swap with other collectors or transfer to a NEM public blockchain network (NEM wallet). The physical silver collector coins, bearing an unconventional denomination of €19.18, were minted at the Lithuanian Mint. In size and form, they resemble a credit card, depicting the Act of Independence and its signatories. The Lithuanian tricolour flag on the reverse of the coin features the national anthem inscribed in a binary code. The obverse of the coin bears the Vytis – the coat of arms of the Republic of Lithuania – incorporated in a QR code linked to the LBCOIN e-shop. The quality of the physical coin, which weighs 36.36 g, is proof-like. The physical coin and digital tokens were designed by Giedrius Paulauskis.

Priced at €99, LBCOIN is available for purchase at the LBCOIN e-shop lbcoin.lb.lt (registration required). Seeking to ensure a level-playing field, one person will be able to purchase one LBCOIN only once from the first to the sixth day of its sale; later, the number of purchases for one person will not be limited.