Washington Turns to Blockchain for Publishing Economic Data

The US Secretary of Commerce will publish economic data, including GDP, directly on the blockchain. Presented at the White House with Donald Trump, the initiative aims to strengthen trust and experiment with blockchain in public administration.

When technology becomes a governance tool

The use of blockchain by governments is not new. Estonia paved the way as early as 2016 by securing its medical records through the KSI blockchain.

Today, this system has become the backbone of its digital identity infrastructure. The European Union has launched the EBSI initiative, a cross-border project designed to provide reliable and decentralized public services.

Singapore and Australia also experimented with this technology to streamline international trade in 2021, while California digitized over 42 million vehicle titles via Avalanche in 2024.

These initiatives show that blockchain is no longer just a playground for cryptos, but a potential architecture for modern states.

Drawing inspiration from these models, the United States is not only seeking to innovate but to regain leadership in a field where Europe and Asia have gained ground.

Transparency or illusion? The limits of an unforgeable ledger

However, this initiative raises a key question: data published on the blockchain is only as reliable as its source. In other words, if a biased GDP figure is recorded, the technology preserves the error without correcting it. It guarantees storage integrity and traceability of dissemination, but not accuracy.

The current political context intensifies this issue. Donald Trump has publicly questioned several recent economic reports, even dismissing the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics in August, accusing her of manipulating figures. In this climate, blockchain becomes a paradoxical tool, displaying transparency on data whose objectivity remains contested.

Thus, this US approach can be seen as an attempt to regain public and market trust, but it also risks fueling debate on the politicization of economic statistics.

Towards governance enhanced by blockchain?

The American decision marks a symbolic step. It shows that blockchain is no longer confined to start-ups or tech giants, but is now entering the core of institutions. If successful, the experiment could extend to other sensitive areas: census, taxation, even election results.

However, technology will never replace the need for honest governance and rigorous statistical methodology. Blockchain is a powerful tool, but it remains a mirror: it reflects the quality of the data recorded on it.

By choosing to place GDP on the blockchain, the United States is not just experimenting with technology, they are redefining the relationship between transparency, trust, and power. Meanwhile, crypto market capitalization reaches 3.8 trillion dollars, soon surpassing the UK GDP.