Income

Marshall Islands Launches World's First Blockchain Universal Basic Income

Is blockchain UBI in the Marshall Islands a logistical solution, or an impractical technology facing infrastructure challenges?

Published DEC 17 2025

Marshall Islands Launches World's First Blockchain Universal Basic Income

Story

Above: Welcome sign at Majuro atoll airport, Marshall Islands on March 4, 2011. Image credit: Andrew Woodley/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

The Facts

The Republic of the Marshall Islands completed the world's first on-chain universal basic income (UBI) disbursement on Tuesday, using the Stellar blockchain and distributing payments through USDM1 — a U.S. dollar-denominated sovereign bond fully backed by short-term U.S. Treasury bills.
CoinDesk
Yellow.com
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More than 33,000 Marshallese residents have enrolled in the ENRA program, which provides each resident with approximately $200 per quarter, totaling $800 per year. Recipients can choose to pay via digital wallet, bank deposit, or physical check.
RNZ
Lowy Institute
The program replaces quarterly physical cash deliveries with instant digital transfers across 24 widely dispersed atolls, addressing logistical challenges where traditional banking access is limited by geographic barriers and cash deliveries involve long delays and high costs.
Guardian
Yellow.com
Cryptopolitan
USDM1 operates under New York law, using a Brady bond structure with U.S. Treasury collateral held by an independent trustee. The Finance Ministry stated that it preserves the nation's sovereignty and does not function as a new currency but as a secure fiscal instrument.
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The Marshall Islands operates under the Compact of Free Association with the U.S. through 2043, receiving approximately $67 million in annual development assistance. The U.S. also pays into a trust fund valued at $1.042 billion as of the 2024-25 fiscal year.
RNZ
Yellow.com
CryptoRank
According to the International Monetary Fund, the initiative is expected to cost around 8.1% of gross domestic product (GDP) once fully implemented, which could crowd out other critical spending and undermine fiscal sustainability. However, the government maintains the payments will not compel citizens to quit their jobs.
Guardian
Lowy Institute

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The Spin

Techno-skeptic narrative

The Marshall Islands' blockchain UBI scheme faces serious implementation challenges that undermine its effectiveness. Internet connectivity remains patchy and frequently disrupted across the islands, making digital payments impractical for most citizens. The overwhelming majority of recipients — 60% choosing bank deposits and most of the remainder opting for paper checks — demonstrates that blockchain technology offers no real advantage over traditional methods.

Taipei Times

cryptonews.com

Techno-optimist narrative

Blockchain technology solves the logistical challenge of delivering payments to 40,000 people scattered across 2 million square kilometers of ocean. Traditional finance literally couldn't reach outer island communities, where only half have bank branches, and checks take weeks to arrive by boat. Digital wallets enable instant delivery through the internet rather than unreliable maritime transport, providing genuine financial access where conventional infrastructure has failed.