Google announced through Rich Weidman, Head of Web3 Strategy at Google Cloud, a new project named Google Cloud Universal Ledger or GCUL, which is a Layer 1 blockchain developed in-house after years of research and development. The announcement was made via a LinkedIn post.
The project aims to be a neutral and reliable network that supports smart contracts written in Python and is designed to be an open infrastructure for financial institutions. Weidman believes that Google's neutrality could give it a competitive edge over other networks like those developed by Circle and Stripe.
Circle has launched its Arc network while Stripe is working on a secret project called Tempo in collaboration with Paradigm. The comparison between the three projects reveals that Stripe is focused on building a payment network worth $1.4 trillion, while Circle aims to enhance the position of USDC through Arc. Meanwhile, Google's Universal Ledger aims to build a planetary-scale network capable of serving billions of users and functions at the level of banks.
Google has been expanding into the blockchain space since 2018 when it added Bitcoin data to BigQuery. It then supported Ethereum and more than ten other networks. This trend accelerated in 2022 with the launch of a Web3 unit and partnerships with companies like Coinbase, Solana, and Polygon.
Google is currently working with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) to test the Universal Ledger in the areas of tokenization and payments. This collaboration emerged last March through an initial experiment to test the settlement of tokenized assets and wholesale payments, with plans to expand the experiments in 2026. CME President Terry Duffy confirmed that the project could provide significant efficiencies in the areas of collateral, margin, and settlement, especially as markets shift to continuous trading around the clock.
This trend comes as part of a broader wave of technology and fintech companies developing their own blockchain networks, such as Plasma, backed by investors linked to Tether, which announced the development of a network dedicated to USDt settlement after raising $24 million. In June, Robinhood launched tokenized US stocks and ETFs for its clients in Europe on the Arbitrum network, with plans to later transition to its own private blockchain.
Through Universal Ledger, it seems that Google is paving the way to establish itself as a major player in the global digital financial infrastructure.