The World Gold Council, in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group, has introduced a proposal for a new platform designed to modernize how gold functions within digital financial ecosystems.

On Thursday, the World Gold Council released a white paper outlining the concept of “Gold as a Service,” a framework intended to “support the issuance and operation of scalable, interoperable digital gold products.”

The proposed platform would link the physical storage of gold with the digital infrastructure used to issue and manage tokenized gold assets.

“By standardizing essential market processes such as custody coordination, reconciliation, compliance, and redemption, the model aims to reduce operational complexity, improve access, and enable greater consistency across digital gold products,” the World Gold Council said.

While existing cryptocurrency-native gold tokens such as Tether Gold (XAUT) and Pax Gold (PAXG) already operate with their own custody, compliance and redemption mechanisms, the World Gold Council’s approach could carry greater institutional weight due to its position within the traditional gold market.

Standardization and liquidity at the core

The proposed framework focuses on creating uniform standards for issuing and managing tokenized gold, with the aim of improving fungibility and ensuring consistency across different platforms. It also incorporates built-in audit mechanisms and assurance processes, while enabling compatibility with existing financial infrastructure.

Additional objectives include enhancing liquidity within lending and borrowing markets tied to digital gold products.

World Gold Council CEO David Tait noted that the financial sector is undergoing a “rapid and pervasive digital transformation,” emphasizing that gold must adapt in order to maintain its relevance within the global system.

“Shared infrastructure can help gold become more accessible, more easily traded and fully integrated into modern financial systems — ensuring it remains as relevant tomorrow as it has been for millennia,” he added.

Matthias Tauber, managing director and senior partner at Boston Consulting Group, highlighted the inevitability of gold’s digital evolution.

“The question is no longer whether gold will be digital; it’s how it can participate in modern financial systems without compromising physical integrity.”

Tokenized commodities gain traction

Data from RWA.xyz indicates that tokenized commodities, including gold, represent roughly $5.5 billion in onchain value, accounting for about 20% of the total tokenized real-world asset market. This segment has expanded by approximately 340% over the past year, reflecting rising demand for gold exposure.

Among existing products, Tether Gold has reached a market capitalization of $2.6 billion, marking a 17% increase over the past 12 months, while Pax Gold stands at around $2.3 billion, according to CoinGecko.

In a further sign of growing interest, crypto exchange Bybit announced on Thursday the launch of a yield-generating tokenized gold product, allowing users to earn interest on holdings of Tether Gold.

Sources:

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260319415787/en/World-Gold-Council-to-Develop-Shared-Infrastructure-for-Digital-Gold

https://cointelegraph.com/news/world-gold-council-framework-tokenized-gold

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