Jigme Singye Wangchuck was born on November 11, 1955 in Dechencholing Palace, Thimphu, Bhutan. His parents are Jigme Dorji Wangchuck and Ashi Kesang Choden Wangchuck. Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth hereditary ruler of Bhutan, ascended the throne in 1972 when he was only 16 years old. For a long time he was the youngest ruler in the world. Many government officials who worked with him were also young. Jigme Singye Wangchuck's father, Wangchuck, involved his son in government work at an early age, appointed him as crown prince and Tongsa ponlop, and then abdicated, so Jigme Singye Wangchuck ascended the throne only a few months before his father's death. Wangchuck received Western and traditional education in various institutions. He began studying at the Dechencholing Palace in 1961 at the age of six. Soon after, he studied at St. Joseph's School in Darjeeling, India. In January 1965 he attended Summerfields School in St. Leonards, Sussex, England, then in 1966 Heatherdown School in Ascot, graduating in 1969. The next phase of his formal education took place at Namselling Palace in 1969. Finally, he attended the Ugyen Wangchuck Academy in Satsham Choten, Paro, which was founded in 1970 with selected students from all over Bhutan.1988. On October 31, Wangchuck's royal wedding was held in a public ceremony at Dechog Lhakhang, Punakha Dzong, in accordance with Buddha's Descent Day. The four queens, Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, Tshering Pem Wangchuck, Tshering Yangdon Wangchuck and Sangay Choden Wangchuck Dasho Yab Ugyen Dorji's daughters, are descendants of the mind and speech incarnations of Ngawang Namgyal and Yum Thuiji Zam. They were previously married privately in 1979. In Bhutan, poverty, illiteracy and maternal mortality rates were at their highest when Jigme Singye Wangchuck ascended the throne in 1972. However, the country was gradually changing, and the king tried to define development with the term "Gross National Happiness". With the confidence of a ruler whose country had never been conquered, he tried to define the conditions for the opening of Bhutan and at the same time redefine the concept of development. He coined the term "Gross National Happiness". Wangchuck said after announcing his resignation in 2006: "Recognizing the progress our nation has made in the past thirty-four years, I would like to state that whatever we have achieved so far is due to the merits of the Bhutanese people."

During the reign of the King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck (1972 - 2006), special coins were minted in Bhutan. These coins come in different denominations and materials, and often feature special themes and designs. As a result of his royal actions, Bhutan's coinage underwent a significant change during this period, and the coins reflect Bhutanese culture and traditions.