Decryption of Google’s layer 1 blockchain: what it means and what we know

• GCUL gets involved in a private test network and strives for commercial rollout in 2026.
• Python-based smart contracts improve accessibility for developers.
• The partnership between Google and CME tests the 24/7 processing of payments and collateral.

With its Layer 1 platform, Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL), which entered a private testnet phase at the end of August 2025, Google Cloud officially entered the area of ​​blockchain infrastructure.

This step positions Google as an emerging competitor on the institutional blockchain market and offers a neutral, powerful distributed Ledger technology that was developed for financial institutions and payment providers.

GCUL supports python-based smart contractsmakes it more accessible to developers and enables a sophisticated programmable on-chain logic.

What does this mean for financial services and the introduction of blockchain?

Google’s GCUL is designed in such a way that it serves as a neutral infrastructure layer and a central challenge in existing blockchain ecosystems, in which financial companies often hesitate to build on networks that are controlled by competitors.

For example, stable coin emitters such as Tether generally avoid blockchains, which were developed by competitors such as Circle, while payment providers such as Adyen were careful when it came to taking over the blockchain solutions from Stripe.

Due to the preservation of neutrality, GCUL could drive a broader institutional acceptance and enable every financial institution to develop blockchain applications without competitive conflicts.

The partnership between Google and the CME Group, which was announced in March 2025, underpins the early development and testing of GCUL.

The CME Group has completed the first integration and tests and focuses on using the blockchain to enable 24/7 handling of collateral, margins and fees, to reduce costs and to improve liquidity.

Full testing with market participants and the commercial introduction of services are expected for 2026.

Google’s blockchain addresses the increasing demand for stablecoin transactions and faster payment solutions.

According to a study cited by Google, the StableCoin volume tripled in 2024 and reached $ 5 trillion of organic transactions, while the total volume climbed to $ 30 trillion.

The report emphasized that fragmented payment systems continue to lead to high costs and inefficiencies in cross-border trade, with potential global GDP losses being forecast to $ 2.8 trillion.

GCUL aims to manage these challenges by providing a transparent transaction infrastructure with low latency.

What we know about GCul’s technology and market position

Technically speaking, GCUL has Python-based smart contracts that support flexible and widespread programming standards.

The platform was not only developed to rationalize payments, but also to act as an infrastructure hub for the capital markets, which enables native commercial bank money in the chain and support agent payment functions.

Google plans to expand GCUL to its wider cloud ecosystem and to provide access to a wide network of institutional partners and developers.

Compared to other up-and-coming Layer 1 blockchain projects such as Tempo of Stripe and ARC by Circle, Google emphasizes the role of GCUL as a neutral actor in the financial infrastructure.

While the blockchain of Stripe focuses on the performance of payment apps and the compatibility of Ethereum and focuses on the platform from Circle on Stablecoin transactions, foreign exchange and capital market applications, GCUL is designed as an open, less vertically integrated layer 1 solution, which enables interoperability between competing institutions.