XRP Ledger Goes Mainstream: Wellgistics Now Powers Payments for Thousands of US Pharmacies

Blockchain just filled its biggest prescription yet.

Wellgistics—a healthcare logistics heavyweight—flipped the switch on XRP Ledger payments for a network of thousands of US pharmacies. No more waiting for slow settlements or swallowing credit card fees. The distributed ledger tech cuts out the middlemen like a scalpel through red tape.

Why This Hurts Traditional Finance

Banks used to own this revenue stream. Now, pharmacies can settle invoices in seconds for fractions of a penny. Take that, SWIFT system.

The Ripple Effect

This isn’t some niche pilot. We’re talking about a major player wiring crypto infrastructure into America’s medicine cabinets. The move could pressure other healthcare vendors to ditch legacy rails—or risk looking like dial-up in a 5G world.

Wall Street analysts will call it ‘disruptive.’ Your local pharmacist will just call it faster.

Wellgistics Becomes First Healthcare Firm to Launch XRP Ledger Payments

Wellgistics, which counts more than 6,500 pharmacies and 200 manufacturers in its network, is among the first healthcare firms to launch a payment solution on the XRP Ledger (XRPL), the open-source blockchain supported by Ripple Labs.

Pharmacies can now enroll in the beta version of the program.

CEO Brian Norton said the response from pharmacy owners has been stronger than expected, noting that they are “more forward-thinking on blockchain than many in the industry assume.”

While the company has not disclosed whether pharmacies will need to hold XRP directly or use fiat-to-XRP conversion for settlement, the system is designed to meet strict compliance standards, including HIPAA and anti-money laundering rules.

The company plans to expand the initiative beyond pharmacy payments to include manufacturers and eventually test direct-to-patient programs, enabling medications to be shipped directly from drugmakers to patients under physician supervision.

Wellgistics Heath is seeking to leverage XRP for payments in a $1.4 trillion Pharma trade market. https://t.co/zXROACmD8B pic.twitter.com/QHhRnCOxHX

The rollout builds on Wellgistics’ May 8 announcement that it WOULD use XRP as both a payments rail and a treasury reserve asset, supported by a $50 million equity line of credit.

Management has said the strategy is aimed at building programmable liquidity and on-demand infrastructure across its healthcare network.

Founded in 2016, Wellgistics was acquired by Danam Health in 2024 before being spun off through an IPO in February 2025.

Today, it provides wholesale distribution, prescription routing, and AI-powered hub services to pharmacies nationwide.

Despite its blockchain ambitions, the company’s stock has struggled since its market debut. Shares have fallen more than 80% since February, closing at $0.62 on Tuesday before ticking up to $0.65 in after-hours trading, giving Wellgistics a market cap of about $47 million.

XRP Ledger Rolls Out New Upgrade Amid Rising Interest

As reported, RippleX, the development arm of Ripple, has rolled out version 2.5.0 of the XRP Ledger, introducing several protocol upgrades aimed at strengthening network functionality and security.

RippleX engineer Mayukha Vadari has called the upgrade “possibly the best single lineup of amendments” ever released, introducing significant improvements to token management and transaction processing.

The XLS-85 amendment upgrades the escrow system by allowing third-party issued tokens, including stablecoins, and introduces multi-purpose tokens designed for institutional applications.

The new update came after the XRP Ledger recorded a surge in user activity, with the number of daily active addresses climbing from an average of 35,000 to over 295,000.