- Lithuania will sell the world's first digital token for collectors in spring 2020 as it looks to push itself as a new player in the financial-tech sector.
- The coin commemorates Lithuania's 1918 declaration of independence, and each of the 24,000 tokens set for release will feature one of the declaration's signatories, according to a press release from the nation's central bank.
- The coin will not enter circulation or serve as legal tender.
- Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.
Lithuania will issue the world's first digital token for collectors in spring 2020 as it looks to establish itself as a growing financial-tech hub.
The crypto coin commemorates the nation's 1918 declaration of independence and its 20 signatories, according to a Bank of Lithuania press release. Each token will feature one of the signatories, and the total 24,000 coins slated for release will be divided into six categories symbolizing the signatories' areas of activity.
The collectible token represents "yet another step in implementing the Bank of Lithuania's strategic direction in the field of innovation and fintech," the bank said in the statement. It added that the token is expected "to engage the youth in coin collecting."
A physical silver coin will also be released with a symbolic denomination of 19.18 euros and resemble a credit card. The coin features a digitized image of the Council of Lithuania made up of roughly 36,500 pixels, or the "approximate number of days that have passed since the Act of 16 February," coin designer Giedrius Paulauskis said.
Buyers will receive six randomly selected tokens with each purchase, and will only receive a physical coin once they collect a token from the six separate categories, the bank said.
The coins won't enter circulation and cannot be used as legal tender. The collectible will be created through blockchain technology and sold exclusively on the central bank's online store.
Now read more markets coverage from Markets Insider and Business Insider: