Blockchain Analytics Firm Nansen Announces Bhutan Expansion in Gelephu Mindfulness City
Nansen will establish a local presence and recruit staff in the kingdom's Special Administrative Region, supporting the area's evolving digital asset infrastructure.
Nansen, a leading blockchain analytics firm, has announced plans to set up a dedicated entity and assemble a team based in Bhutan within Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC), marking its expansion into the kingdom as the Special Administrative Region continues to push forward with its digital asset strategy.
A joint statement provided to Cointelegraph revealed that Nansen intends to establish a formal incorporation within GMC while building analytics infrastructure on the ground, designed to deliver blockchain data and market intelligence solutions to industry stakeholders active in the area.
GMC represents a specially designed administrative region located in Bhutan's southern territory, conceived as a hub for sustainable economic advancement. The area has previously unveiled a range of digital asset programs encompassing custody solutions, tokenization initiatives, institutional liquidity mechanisms and regulatory structures.
This expansion will not substitute Nansen's current Singapore-based operations, according to CEO Alex Svanevik in his conversation with Cointelegraph. Instead, it will create a supplementary entity operating within GMC. Svanevik explained that the company "chose GMC because of the vision behind it."
Svanevik emphasized that Bhutan distinguished itself due to digital assets being woven into the region's economic architecture from the beginning. He said:
Most crypto-friendly jurisdictions are optimizing for what exists today. Bhutan is building something fundamentally different — a values-driven economic zone with digital assets baked into the foundation, not bolted on as an afterthought. GMC has crypto in its strategic reserves, a progressive regulatory framework, and genuine sovereign conviction behind it. That's rare. We want to be pioneers in that ecosystem.
The company's expansion strategy includes recruiting personnel from the local workforce. Although Nansen did not reveal precise hiring numbers, Svanevik indicated the company aims to establish a "meaningful local team," with additional information regarding positions and office infrastructure anticipated to emerge over the next several months.
Nansen positions itself as an AI-native onchain analytics platform that monitors over 500 million labeled blockchain addresses while delivering real-time data tools spanning major blockchain networks.
Bhutan positions Gelephu Mindfulness City at the center of its digital asset strategy
Revealed in 2023, Gelephu Mindfulness City functions as a special administrative region conceived to serve as an emerging economic center aimed at generating high-value employment opportunities locally and drawing businesses from various industries including finance, green energy, technology, healthcare and agriculture, all while providing regulatory flexibility tailored to crypto and fintech enterprises.
Last December, government authorities announced plans to designate up to 10,000 Bitcoin (BTC) from the nation's reserves to facilitate the city's expansion. Government representatives indicated they were assessing treasury management and risk-managed yield approaches for the Bitcoin reserves, in addition to long-term strategies focused on maintaining value while promoting stable and sustainable economic growth.
Nansen is not the inaugural digital asset firm to establish operations in the region. In December as well, Crypto market maker Cumberland DRW executed a multi-year memorandum of understanding to contribute to the development of digital asset infrastructure within GMC, encompassing financial frameworks, sustainable mining and AI compute, yield strategies and stablecoin infrastructure.
Bhutan maintains the world's fifth-largest national Bitcoin reserve, with Bitbo estimating its holdings at 11,286 BTC, as of Nov. 18.
The nation's cryptocurrency strategy falls under the leadership of Druk Holding and Investments (DHI), which serves as the commercial arm of the royal government.
During an April 2025 interview with Reuters, DHI CEO Ujjwal Deep Dahal revealed that the fund initiated cryptocurrency accumulation in 2019 as a method to transform excess hydropower production into foreign-currency liquidity, while senior government officials in the capital city of Thimphu have confirmed that portions of the profits have contributed to supporting government salary payments throughout the past two years.