PANews reported on August 27th that Google Cloud launched its Level 1 blockchain, GCUL. GCUL will utilize Python-based smart contracts and aims to be a neutral infrastructure for finance, providing a "native commercial bank on-chain currency," 24/7 capital markets infrastructure, and payment and agency capabilities. The plan is to open it to the entire Google network, encompassing "billions of users" and "hundreds of institutional partners."

Currently in a private testnet phase, the platform announced a pilot program for tokenized assets in partnership with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) earlier this year. Further technical details are planned for the coming months.