Announcing OIL1, a World-First Digital Asset Connecting the Global Energy and Digital Financial Markets

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/announcing-oil1-a-world-first-digital-asset-connecting-the-global-energy-and-digital-financial-markets-302666796.html

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Announcing OIL1, the world's first oil-backed digital asset, a stablecoin built on transformative US technologies. OIL1 will be collateralized by verified reserves of Gulf crude oil and pegged to both the U.S. dollar (USD) and the price of Gulf crude oil, creating an unprecedented link between the energy sector and the digital asset economy.

The new digital asset will reshape the foundations of the $2.4 trillion global oil market and the fast growing $260 billion digital stablecoin market, bridging traditional energy commodity assets with advanced blockchain infrastructure. Tokenization will broaden access to energy assets by lowering barriers for retail traders, enabling smaller investment denominations and 24/7 market access, with programmable, near-instant transfers and on chain settlement. The dual peg structure provides investors with a transparent and reliable hedge against both currency volatility and commodity price fluctuations, while opening global access to energy-backed financial instruments and friction-less and accelerated global oil trading. OIL1 will be issued by the Gulf Energy Exchange (GEX) and subject to regulatory approval by the Central Bank of the Kingdom of Bahrain. It will be backed by a diversified reserve basket—including USDC and USD1—to support liquidity, transparency, and resilience.