In 2023, the combined public debt of developed countries exceeded 120% of global GDP, and the cost of servicing the debt rose to a historic high. Over the past three years, more than 40% of international companies have faced restricted access to credit and a sharp increase in inflation risks. At the same time, the volume of institutional investments in crypto assets and gold more than doubled, and for the first time bitcoin was recognized as a reserve asset at the state level in several Latin American and Asian countries. These facts are not just statistics, but a reflection of deeper processes: the traditional financial system is going through a crisis, and the usual business support tools are losing their effectiveness.
Financial trends for international business
The financial reset is not just another stage of the cycle, but a systemic transformation caused by the exhaustion of traditional stabilization tools. The crisis of the financial system is manifested in the growth of systemic risks, currency instability, increased pressure on fiscal policy, and the need for sovereign debt restructuring. For companies, this means: the usual scenarios of liquidity and reserve management no longer work, and the resilience of financial institutions becomes a key factor for survival.
In recent years, COREDO’s practice has shown that de-dollarization of the economy, digitalization of financial flows, and the emergence of alternative liquidity support tools (for example, asset tokenization and the introduction of central bank digital currencies, CBDC) are not just fashionable trends, but vital strategies for international business. These issues are especially acute for companies operating at the intersection of the EU, Asia, and the CIS, where macroeconomic instability and currency wars increase pressure on corporate budgets.
Financial reset of business in Europe and Asia
Within COREDO’s consulting projects, we regularly analyze three main scenarios of financial reset for businesses:
- Deep sovereign debt restructuring: states are forced to revise debt servicing terms, which affects the cost of borrowed capital and the availability of credit for companies. For example, in 2022 a number of EU and Southeast Asian countries already implemented such scenarios, leading to changes in the financing conditions of large corporate projects.
- De-dollarization of the economy and currency diversification: companies face the need to revise the currency structure of reserves and implement new hedging instruments. Solutions developed at COREDO include the creation of multi-currency reserve portfolios and the use of hedging strategies based on derivatives and crypto assets.
- Geopolitical consequences of reserve revaluation: the revaluation of gold and currency reserves at the state level leads to changes in the investment climate, tighter control over capital flows, and the emergence of new requirements for corporate transparency.
These scenarios require businesses to be flexible, transparent, and ready to transform their financial strategies.
Gold monetization and asset tokenization
The financial reset is impossible without rethinking the tools for reserve and liquidity management. Today, three key areas dominate the market:
- Gold monetization: returning to classical mechanisms of supporting the monetary base through gold and its derivatives.
- Asset tokenization — converting tangible and intangible values into digital form using blockchain technologies.
- Introduction of central bank digital currencies (CBDC): creating new forms of settlement and reserve instruments that increase transparency and speed of cross-border operations.
COREDO’s practice confirms: the integration of these tools allows companies not only to increase resilience to crises but also to optimize reserve structures, reduce debt servicing costs, and improve the efficiency of budgetary measures.
Revaluation of the Federal Reserve’s gold reserves
The mechanics of gold monetization are based on the revaluation of gold reserves and the issuance of instruments backed by them — gold certificates, which can be used for money issuance under collateral. Historically, the most striking examples are the actions of the U.S. Federal Reserve System in the 1930s and 1970s, when the revaluation of gold reserves made it possible to increase the monetary base without direct issuance of unsecured funds.
In recent years, a number of countries (Germany, Lebanon, South Africa) have implemented their own gold monetization scenarios, which allowed them to temporarily stabilize budgets and reduce debt burdens. Still, COREDO’s experience shows: the effectiveness of these measures depends on the structure of the economy, the transparency of procedures, and trust in fiat currencies. In some cases, gold monetization led to inflationary risks and the need to tighten fiscal policy.
Asset tokenization for business
Asset tokenization and the introduction of CBDC open fundamentally new opportunities for businesses to manage liquidity and reserves. Examples from COREDO’s practice include the creation of corporate reserves based on tokenized gold and the introduction of strategic reserves in cryptocurrencies to hedge currency and inflation risks.
The introduction of central bank digital currencies allows companies to accelerate cross-border settlements, increase the transparency of financial flows, and reduce transaction costs. At the same time, capitalization of reserves through tokenized assets becomes an effective tool for managing debt via assets and increasing resilience to macroeconomic shocks.
Gold monetization and inflation
Gold monetization has a complex and contradictory impact on financial stability. On the one hand, it allows states to quickly expand the monetary base and temporarily solve debt servicing problems. On the other, it creates inflationary risks, undermines trust in the dollar as a reserve currency, and intensifies macroeconomic instability.
In a number of countries, the revaluation of gold reserves was accompanied by rising inflation and declining confidence in the national currency, which forced companies to look for alternative tools to support liquidity and diversify currencies.
Sovereign debt restructuring: impact on business
Sovereign debt restructuring and de-dollarization of the economy are becoming key factors in transforming corporate strategies. Managing debt through assets, introducing multi-currency reserves, and using currency diversification tools allow companies to reduce debt burdens and increase resilience to external shocks.
Bitcoin as a reserve asset: advantages and risks
In recent years, bitcoin and other crypto assets have increasingly been considered as alternative reserve assets, both at the state and corporate level. Institutional investments in crypto assets are growing, and a number of countries are already forming strategic crypto reserves to hedge currency and inflation risks.
Solutions implemented by the COREDO team include the creation of corporate reserves based on bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, which allows companies to increase financial resilience and reduce dependence on traditional reserve currencies. Nevertheless, the institutionalization of cryptocurrencies also carries new risks: increased regulation, the emergence of large players, rising volatility, and threats to trust in fiat currencies.
Thus, despite the significant potential for strengthening business resilience, the use of cryptocurrencies requires careful analysis of regulatory risks and corresponding management strategies, which becomes especially important in the context of tightening regulation.
Regulatory risks for business and strategies
Changes in the role of regulators and tighter control over capital flows require companies to adopt new approaches to reserve and liquidity management. Best practices developed at COREDO include:
- Implementing hedging strategies using both traditional and digital assets.
- Using alternative liquidity support tools: from tokenized assets to export stabilization funds.
- Building flexible reserve management models that take into account scenarios of macroeconomic instability and currency wars.
To mitigate the risks of cryptocurrency institutionalization, it is important to build transparent structures, regularly audit reserves, and use tools to control capital flows.
Risk management during a financial crisis
The financial reset requires businesses to have strategic flexibility and readiness to implement new tools. Based on COREDO’s experience, I propose the following recommendations:
- Diversify the structure of reserves: combine traditional assets (gold, currencies) with tokenized and crypto assets.
- Introduce alternative liquidity support tools: use DeFi solutions, export stabilization funds, corporate bonds, tokenized assets.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of budgetary measures and ROI of new strategies: implement metrics for analyzing returns on investment, taking into account macroeconomic risks and inflation scenarios.
- Build partnerships with expert teams: comprehensive support implemented by the COREDO team helps minimize legal and financial risks, ensure transparency, and comply with international AML/KYC standards.
Thus, comprehensive financial strategy building creates the foundation for effective management of both physical and digital company assets — in the next section we will look at practices of gold monetization for international business.