Tokyo, Japan — September 2, 2025
LFDT’s CBDC eBook: Hyperledger Iroha’s Real-World Impact
→ LF Decentralized Trust’s CBDC eBook highlights Iroha/Iroha 2 deployments in production and PoCs—from Cambodia’s Bakong to Pacific pilots—showing open DLT momentum for CBDCs
LF Decentralized Trust’s 2025 CBDC eBook (available in English and Japanese) spotlights multiple national deployments and PoCs built on Hyperledger Iroha and Iroha 2—including Cambodia’s Bakong (production at scale), Solomon Islands’ Bokolo Cash (PoC), Papua New Guinea’s Digital Kina (PoC), and Lao PDR's DLak (PoC). Together they show why open, vendor-neutral DLT—and Iroha in particular—continues to be chosen for regulated digital money.
Central banks are moving CBDC work from theory to production. The Linux Foundation’s LF Decentralized Trust (LFDT) has compiled a 2025 snapshot of this landscape, emphasizing why open development, neutral governance, and proven codebases matter for a public-good like digital cash. The eBook specifically highlights projects running on LFDT technologies—including Hyperledger Iroha—as concrete examples of what’s working.
Below are the Iroha-based case studies and data points featured in the report, with context for policymakers, technologists, and partners evaluating next steps.
Below are the Iroha-based case studies and data points featured in the report, with context for policymakers, technologists, and partners evaluating next steps.
Cambodia — Bakong
Launched by the National Bank of Cambodia in 2020, Bakong is the first large-scale blockchain-powered, central-bank–run interbank payment system in production built on Hyperledger Iroha. While often labeled a CBDC, the eBook clarifies Bakong’s model as tokenized deposits (a commercial-bank liability).
The system has scaled to 30M+ wallets in a country of ~17M people and, in 2024 alone, processed over 608 million transactions worth over USD 150 billion—3x YoY growth and >300% of Cambodia’s GDP in total volume.
Launched by the National Bank of Cambodia in 2020, Bakong is the first large-scale blockchain-powered, central-bank–run interbank payment system in production built on Hyperledger Iroha. While often labeled a CBDC, the eBook clarifies Bakong’s model as tokenized deposits (a commercial-bank liability).
The system has scaled to 30M+ wallets in a country of ~17M people and, in 2024 alone, processed over 608 million transactions worth over USD 150 billion—3x YoY growth and >300% of Cambodia’s GDP in total volume.
The National Bank of Cambodia’s mid-year 2025 report shows 303 million transactions in Khmer riel and 240 million in US dollars in the first half of 2025—roughly double the volumes in the same period of 2024. Total value reached KHR 129 trillion (about US $32 billion) in riel and about US $69 billion in dollars.
See also:
Bakong volume surges in riel, dollar transactions in H1 (2025),
Ledger Insights: Cambodia’s Bakong DLT payments volumes reach 3x GDP (2025),
Khmer Times: Bakong success paving the way for other digital asset creations (2024),
WEF: How is digital currency revolutionizing Cambodia’s finance system? (2022),
WEF: Cambodia's digital currency can show other central banks the way (2021).
- Bakong is a rare, multi-year production reference showing how an Iroha-based platform can deliver national-scale retail payments with mobile UX, inclusive onboarding, and bank-grade controls without a second of downtime—all under a central bank’s oversight.
See also:
Bakong volume surges in riel, dollar transactions in H1 (2025),
Ledger Insights: Cambodia’s Bakong DLT payments volumes reach 3x GDP (2025),
Khmer Times: Bakong success paving the way for other digital asset creations (2024),
WEF: How is digital currency revolutionizing Cambodia’s finance system? (2022),
WEF: Cambodia's digital currency can show other central banks the way (2021).
Solomon Islands — Bokolo Cash
In November 2023, the Central Bank of Solomon Islands initiated a PoC for Bokolo Cash, a digital Solomon Island Dollar on a permissioned Hyperledger Iroha 2 network. The PoC covered retail transactions in Honiara, interbank settlement, and simulated cross-border remittances. Participants used Fearless Wallet with two-tier KYC, and the system interoperated with the public SORA network to simulate cross-border flows—a dual-layer approach (permissioned + public) designed to combine regulatory assurance with global reach.
In November 2023, the Central Bank of Solomon Islands initiated a PoC for Bokolo Cash, a digital Solomon Island Dollar on a permissioned Hyperledger Iroha 2 network. The PoC covered retail transactions in Honiara, interbank settlement, and simulated cross-border remittances. Participants used Fearless Wallet with two-tier KYC, and the system interoperated with the public SORA network to simulate cross-border flows—a dual-layer approach (permissioned + public) designed to combine regulatory assurance with global reach.
- This is a clean example of Iroha 2 as the regulated core with interoperability to public rails when appropriate—exactly the kind of architecture central banks are exploring for cross-border use cases.
Papua New Guinea — Digital Kina
From December 2024 to January 2025, the Bank of Papua New Guinea ran a CBDC PoC for Digital Kina, developed with SORAMITSU and supported by Japan’s METI, Mitsubishi Research Institute, and JICA. The PoC used the SORA v3 Hub Chain powered by Hyperledger Iroha 2, enabling participants to execute real-time P2P payments and remittances via a mobile wallet. Security features for fund recovery in case of theft or loss were tested; the trial demonstrated 24/7 secure payments and fast settlement and is slated to expand for broader feedback and regulatory refinement.
From December 2024 to January 2025, the Bank of Papua New Guinea ran a CBDC PoC for Digital Kina, developed with SORAMITSU and supported by Japan’s METI, Mitsubishi Research Institute, and JICA. The PoC used the SORA v3 Hub Chain powered by Hyperledger Iroha 2, enabling participants to execute real-time P2P payments and remittances via a mobile wallet. Security features for fund recovery in case of theft or loss were tested; the trial demonstrated 24/7 secure payments and fast settlement and is slated to expand for broader feedback and regulatory refinement.
- This shows Iroha 2’s fit for a national retail context and its ability to support always-on operations—critical for Pacific economies with geographic dispersion and financial inclusion priorities.
Laos — DLak
In February 2023, the Bank of the Lao PDR and SORAMITSU conducted a CBDC PoC
for DLak using Hyperledger Iroha. Based on lessons from Cambodia’s Bakong system, the PoC explores modernizing national payments, improving remittance efficiency, and reducing transaction costs
In February 2023, the Bank of the Lao PDR and SORAMITSU conducted a CBDC PoC
for DLak using Hyperledger Iroha. Based on lessons from Cambodia’s Bakong system, the PoC explores modernizing national payments, improving remittance efficiency, and reducing transaction costs
- including QR payments at participating merchants and support for cross-border use cases. The work builds on a 2021 feasibility study by Soramitsu and JICA and aligns with Laos’s economic security and monetary sovereignty objectives.
World's 1st blockchain retail CBDC, in Cambodia
Central Bank of Solomon Islands CBDC PoC
Papua New Guinea CBDC PoC
Bank of the Lao PDR CBDC PoC
Why central banks choose Iroha 2
- Security & reliability by design. Iroha 2 is implemented in Rust, bringing strong memory-safety guarantees and energy efficiency—practical benefits for high-assurance, long-lived financial infrastructure.
- Regulated-grade simplicity. Iroha emphasizes deterministic commands and modularity, lowering the barrier for central bank and FI teams to reason about state transitions and compliance. (See LFDT’s Feb 2025 Iroha 2 release note for the project’s design goals.)
- Open governance, vendor-neutrality. As an LFDT project, Iroha is developed in the open, with community processes that systematize security practices and roadmap transparency—key to avoiding lock-in for public-sector systems.
Interoperability for the real world
Bokolo Cash, Digital Kina, and DLak PoCs demonstrate architectures that align with the LFDT CBDC eBook’s broader thesis: open, modular DLTs should support domestic policy controls while enabling cross-border connectivity. The SORA v3 Hub Chain, built on Iroha 2, is designed to be that neutral bridge layer for future cross-jurisdiction flows and asset tokenization.
Bokolo Cash, Digital Kina, and DLak PoCs demonstrate architectures that align with the LFDT CBDC eBook’s broader thesis: open, modular DLTs should support domestic policy controls while enabling cross-border connectivity. The SORA v3 Hub Chain, built on Iroha 2, is designed to be that neutral bridge layer for future cross-jurisdiction flows and asset tokenization.
Figure 1: Example of interoperability between systems built with Hyperledger Iroha 2, leveraging the SORA v3 Hub Chain technology, a Hyperledger Iroha 2–based network, that in the future may provide an optional transaction layer between permissioned and public blockchain networks while preserving complete monetary sovereignty for each participant.
What this means for policymakers and program leads
- Production-grade precedent exists. Bakong’s multi-year track record and 2024 growth metrics provide a concrete benchmark for retail systems built on Iroha.
- PoCs are validating cross-border patterns. The Solomon Islands and PNG work show viable patterns for permissioned cores with selective public-network interoperability.
- Open source reduces long-term risk. Vendor-neutral governance plus transparent code review improves resilience and policy agility for national infrastructure.
Get the free 2025 LF Decentralized Trust's CBDC eBook (available in English and Japanese) from LF Decentralized Trust's website now.
Edition note:
The English edition of LFDT’s CBDC eBook omitted Laos (DLak) due to an editorial oversight. The Japanese edition corrects this and includes the DLak project among Iroha deployments.
Edition note:
The English edition of LFDT’s CBDC eBook omitted Laos (DLak) due to an editorial oversight. The Japanese edition corrects this and includes the DLak project among Iroha deployments.
Real-World Impact
Open, vendor-neutral DLT with clear governance is now a prerequisite for public-money infrastructure—exactly where Iroha 2 excels.
What’s Next: Iroha-Powered Pipeline 2025–2026
The LFDT eBook captures the state of play up to early 2025. Since then, multiple Iroha-related initiatives have been green-lit or moved into the next phase—spanning CBDC pilots, digital bonds, and operational tooling that lowers time-to-production for regulated use cases.
The LFDT eBook captures the state of play up to early 2025. Since then, multiple Iroha-related initiatives have been green-lit or moved into the next phase—spanning CBDC pilots, digital bonds, and operational tooling that lowers time-to-production for regulated use cases.
- CBDC PoC with offline capability (2025): Japan’s METI selected a multi-country program that includes a CBDC proof-of-concept with Soramitsu and indicates scope for offline payments following a visit to Cambodia with Soramitsu in January 2025.
- From PoC to pilot: After completing the Digital Kina PoC in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (Dec 2024), the upcoming pilot phase focuses on broader user testing, resilience, and regulatory hardening on SORA v3 Hub Chain (Iroha 2)—with an explicit goal of 24/7 retail payments and cross-border remittances.
- Bokolo Cash pilot expansion: Building on the Iroha 2-based PoC that validated retail and interbank flows (and simulated cross-border), the METI program earmarks resources to scale participants and move toward production-grade operations in Solomon Islands.
- Palau Digital savings bonds pilot: The Palau Invest prototype (Iroha 2 on SORA v3) is live; the next milestone is a pilot toward production issuance, led by the Ministry of Finance with METI support. This is a concrete Iroha-backed RWA instrument purpose-built for domestic retail investors.
- Operational tooling — IWAFUNE BaaS: Soramitsu and Iroha Engineering are productizing IWAFUNE, a GUI-driven ops layer atop Iroha that reduces operational overhead and accelerates app delivery (digital currency, e-ID, traceability, certificates). For public-sector stacks, this shortens time-to-pilot and simplifies ongoing operations.
- Fraud Intelligence Limited (FIL) — consortium use of Iroha: Beyond CBDCs, Soramitsu co-develops the Fraud Intelligence Blockchain with Orillion. FIL positions Iroha as the backbone for real-time, cross-telco fraud data sharing—evidence that regulated-grade Iroha networks can underpin inter-institution data utilities, not just money.
The near-term roadmap extends Iroha 2 from single-jurisdiction pilots to scaled, policy-compliant platforms—retail CBDC with offline reach, 24/7 national payments, interbank+retail CBDC, and sovereign digital bonds. Supporting this, IWAFUNE operational tooling and the FIL consortium model demonstrate how Iroha can standardize both value and data-sharing rails across regulated ecosystems.
Hyperledger Iroha is an LF Decentralized Trust project. Iroha 2 (released 2025) introduced a comprehensive architectural overhaul to make it simpler for teams to build digital asset and identity systems with out-of-the-box features and modular extensions—well-aligned to CBDC and national payments requirements.
- Explore Iroha 2 on the official site and documentation, including architecture, SDKs, and deployment guidance.
- For central banks, regulators, and implementation partners evaluating CBDCs or national retail payment upgrades with Iroha 2, contact Soramitsu to discuss pilots and migration paths.
Founded in February 2016, Soramitsu is an award-winning global financial technology company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, with expertise in developing blockchain-based solutions for digital asset management, payments, and digital identity. Soramitsu’s mission is to harness blockchain technology to address the world’s most pressing societal challenges.
Utilizing blockchain, Soramitsu has developed a digital currency infrastructure backbone for the National Bank of Cambodia; CBDC PoCs with the Bank of the Lao PDR, the Central Bank of Solomon Islands, and the Bank of Papua New Guinea; a blockchain-based digital savings bond system, Palau Invest, in collaboration with the Government of Palau; a closed-loop payment system for the University of Aizu in Japan; and an identity-verification system prototype for Bank Central Asia in Indonesia.
Soramitsu was shortlisted in the Monetary Authority of Singapore CBDC Challenge, participated in Asia-Pacific’s first proof-of-concept test of a cross-border multi-currency securities settlement system using distributed ledger technology with the Asian Development Bank, and, in collaboration with the Risk Assurance Group and Orillion Solutions, developed the technology core of the Fraud Intelligence Blockchain.
Soramitsu is a contributor to many open source projects, such as Klaytn (now Kaia); Zenswap—a joint venture with Analog; the SORA crypto-economic system; the Polkaswap DEX; and the DeFi wallet Fearless Wallet.
Soramitsu is the developer and a major contributor to the open-source blockchain platform Hyperledger Iroha, a project of the Linux Foundation Decentralized Trust, tailored for enterprise and public-sector use.
Soramitsu continues to deploy cutting-edge technology on a global scale to expedite financial inclusion and fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals, and to mitigate economic inefficiencies.
Soramitsu was shortlisted in the Monetary Authority of Singapore CBDC Challenge, participated in Asia-Pacific’s first proof-of-concept test of a cross-border multi-currency securities settlement system using distributed ledger technology with the Asian Development Bank, and, in collaboration with the Risk Assurance Group and Orillion Solutions, developed the technology core of the Fraud Intelligence Blockchain.
Soramitsu is a contributor to many open source projects, such as Klaytn (now Kaia); Zenswap—a joint venture with Analog; the SORA crypto-economic system; the Polkaswap DEX; and the DeFi wallet Fearless Wallet.
Soramitsu is the developer and a major contributor to the open-source blockchain platform Hyperledger Iroha, a project of the Linux Foundation Decentralized Trust, tailored for enterprise and public-sector use.
Soramitsu continues to deploy cutting-edge technology on a global scale to expedite financial inclusion and fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals, and to mitigate economic inefficiencies.
SEE ALSO:
Soramitsu Expands Use of Hyperledger Iroha 2, an Innovative Open-Source Blockchain Framework
Soramitsu is proud to announce its contribution to Hyperledger Iroha 2, a next-generation open-source blockchain framework that delivers robust, fast, and efficient digital asset and identity management solutions.
Soramitsu is proud to announce its contribution to Hyperledger Iroha 2, a next-generation open-source blockchain framework that delivers robust, fast, and efficient digital asset and identity management solutions.
Follow Soramitsu's news and latest partnerships and developments here.
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Privacy Policy
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© 2016-2025 SORAMITSU.
All Rights Reserved.