Marshall Islands Makes History: World’s First Blockchain-Powered UBI Program Goes Live

A tiny Pacific nation just rewired the social contract—and Wall Street didn't see it coming.

The Marshall Islands has officially launched the planet's first sovereign Universal Basic Income program built entirely on a blockchain. Forget paper checks and bureaucratic delays. This system distributes digital currency directly to citizens' wallets, slashing administrative overhead and putting real-time financial power in the hands of the people.

The Tech That Cuts Out the Middleman

By leveraging a transparent, immutable ledger, the program bypasses traditional banking infrastructure and the layers of costly intermediaries that usually skim value from public funds. Every transaction is verifiable, traceable, and settles in minutes, not days.

A New Blueprint for Sovereign Finance

This isn't just a pilot project; it's a live, national-scale experiment in decentralized governance. It proves a government can directly issue and manage a digital currency for social welfare—no central bank digital currency (CBDC) playbook required. It’s a quiet revolution that makes most legacy financial systems look like they're running on fax machines.

The move positions the Marshall Islands at the bleeding edge of monetary innovation, offering a stark contrast to the slow-moving, debate-heavy approaches of larger economies. It turns the traditional model of state aid on its head, delivering efficiency that would give any budget hawk a reason to smile—assuming they can look past their distrust of anything that doesn't generate banker fees.

One nation's leap into blockchain-based UBI doesn't just support its citizens; it throws a stark, unforgiving light on how inefficient and opaque traditional fiscal distribution has always been. The future of public finance just arrived, and it didn't ask for Wall Street's permission.

We’re helping tokenize a nation.

The Marshall Islands is launching blockchain-based UBI, giving citizens dollar-denominated tokens they can receive, store, and send peer-to-peer from their phones.

Powered by Crossmint Wallets pic.twitter.com/lvAWjTI6SW

— Crossmint (@crossmint) December 16, 2025

The program was carried out under, the country’s national social support initiative, and represents the.

Distributions were made using, a digitally native sovereign debt instrument issued inand, ensuring price stability and transparency.

Overcoming Geographic Barriers With Digital Payments

The Marshall Islands faces unique logistical challenges due to its vast ocean territory and widely dispersed islands, which have historically made.

Through digitization, citizens were able to receive UBI payments quickly and securely via, a purpose-built digital wallet designed specifically for public benefit distribution.

According to the, the country has long suffered from limited access to correspondent banking services, making the creation of alternative financial infrastructure a critical national priority.

The world's first onchain disbursement of universal basic income, built on Stellar.

This is what real adoption and impact look like.https://t.co/GlisGzmqmG

— stellar (@StellarOrg) December 16, 2025

Previously, cash payments often had to be delivered by boat, which is an approach burdened by high transportation, security, and administrative costs. Blockchain technology was selected to address these inefficiencies by enabling.

Blockchain Infrastructure Designed for Accessibility

At the core of the system is, a user-friendly wallet tailored to account for varying levels of digital literacy among citizens. Unlike general-purpose crypto wallets, Lomalo is optimized exclusively for welfare distribution and public finance use cases.

The platform operates on the, whose native asset,, is known for, making it well-suited for large-scale social payments.

SDF CEOdescribed the initiative as “a realization of what the Stellar network was built for,” emphasizing its role in enabling inclusive and efficient financial systems. The foundation supported the project withto help build the technical infrastructure.

Unlike pilot programs or theoretical trials, the initiative is already functioning as a, drawing international attention as a breakthrough example of blockchain in public policy.

Legal Structure and Protection of Monetary Sovereignty

Theinstrument used for the UBI distribution is issued underand follows a structure similar to, commonly used in emerging markets.

Each unit of USDM1 is continuously backed by U.S. Treasury securities and held under legally segregated custody. An independent trustee structure ensures that neither the government nor private issuers can unilaterally alter collateral arrangements, reinforcing transparency and investor protection.

Thehas previously warned that digital financial instruments like USDM1 could introduce risks disproportionate to their expected returns. In response, the Marshall Islands government stressed that the program is.

Officials emphasized that USDM1 is intended as a, not a replacement for existing currency systems, and does not compromise national monetary sovereignty.

While the initiative joins global digital currency experiments such asand, it stands apart by focusing exclusively on.

The government maintains that USDM1 does not undermine financial or technological sovereignty and instead represents a forward-looking national strategy leveraging digital innovation to improve public services.

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