Ripple's RLUSD Powers Humanitarian Aid for Major Global NGOs

Ripple has partnered with four leading humanitarian organizations to revolutionize how emergency aid reaches communities in crisis. World Central Kitchen, Water.org, GiveDirectly, and Mercy Corps are now leveraging Ripple Payments and the RLUSD stablecoin to deliver faster, more transparent cross-border transactions. The announcement, made on October 30, 2025, showcases blockchain technology's real-world utility in addressing critical infrastructure challenges that have long hampered global aid delivery.

From Days to Hours: Blockchain Transforms Aid Delivery

Traditional humanitarian funding faces critical infrastructure challenges that delay emergency assistance when time matters most. Conventional cross-border payments through correspondent banking systems can take two to four days to settle, with high fees reducing the amount that reaches vulnerable communities. Ripple Payments, a licensed end-to-end platform powered by blockchain technology, enables organizations to send money across borders in seconds, operating 24/7/365 without relying on traditional banking intermediaries.

Pairing this platform with RLUSD, Ripple's U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, provides nonprofits with a way to access digital asset benefits without directly managing cryptocurrency. The system maintains dollar stability while delivering blockchain speed and transparency. According to Monica Long, President of Ripple, these collaborations show "how blockchain technology can reshape the systems behind global relief and unlock lasting impact at scale."

World Central Kitchen: Meals in Hours, Not Days

World Central Kitchen, founded by Chef José Andrés, exemplifies this transformation. The nonprofit has served more than 500 million meals to communities impacted by disasters since its founding in 2010. Since 2020, Ripple has supported WCK in delivering millions of meals to communities and first responders impacted by natural disasters.

Building on this partnership, WCK is now using Ripple Payments and RLUSD to accelerate fund disbursement to local restaurants and partners in regions without established banking infrastructure. The technology enables settlement in hours instead of days, even in challenging environments. According to Joshua Tripp, President of Innovation at World Central Kitchen, "With Ripple, we're testing new financial technologies to settle payments in hours instead of days, even in challenging environments, allowing us to serve more communities in their most vulnerable moments."

The faster settlement times mean World Central Kitchen can secure kitchens, purchase supplies, and coordinate with local restaurants more rapidly when disaster strikes—expanding their daily meal capacity precisely when demand spikes during emergencies.

Water.org: Expanding Access to 81 Million People

Water.org, co-founded by Gary White and Matt Damon, has improved access to safe water or sanitation for more than 81 million people globally. The organization works by providing microfinance partners with capital to offer affordable loans for water and sanitation solutions to families in need.

After successfully piloting Ripple Payments in Brazil, Mexico, and Peru, Water.org plans to process all Latin American transactions through Ripple's platform and is exploring expansion into Africa and Asia. The blockchain-enabled system helps Water.org move funds more efficiently to microfinance institutions, reducing costs and accelerating capital deployment.

Gary White, CEO and Co-founder of Water.org, explained the impact: "Through our collaboration with Ripple, we're exploring how digital payments can help us move funds more efficiently to our local partners—unlocking capital faster so more families can access the solutions they need to survive and thrive."

Real-Time Crisis Response in Kenya

Mercy Corps Ventures, the impact investment arm of Mercy Corps, is conducting multiple pilots in Kenya testing RLUSD for parametric insurance and anticipatory cash transfers for unbanked populations. Parametric insurance pays out automatically when specific conditions are met—such as drought indicators—without requiring lengthy claims processes.

The blockchain-enabled payment system addresses a critical gap in emergency response timing. Scott Onder, Chief Investment Officer at Mercy Corps, emphasized the urgency: "Through our pilot in Kenya, we're testing how stablecoins like RLUSD can move aid faster and more reliably to people facing crises. For families waiting on emergency cash or insurance payouts, even a few hours can make a difference—and blockchain-enabled payments are helping us close that gap."

A completed pilot program in partnership with DIVA Donate successfully insured 517 pastoralists against drought conditions, with 70% of participants being women. This demonstrates RLUSD's potential to protect vulnerable communities from climate shocks through faster, more reliable payment infrastructure.

GiveDirectly, another major nonprofit partner, is scoping similar pilot programs for parametric insurance and anticipatory cash transfers, expanding the model to additional regions where traditional banking infrastructure is limited or nonexistent.

Technical Infrastructure Enabling Humanitarian Impact

The success of these partnerships relies on several key technical capabilities that differentiate blockchain-based payments from traditional systems:

24/7/365 Operations: Unlike traditional banking systems with business hour limitations, Ripple Payments operates continuously, enabling emergency fund transfers at any time—critical during natural disasters that strike without warning.

Near-Instant Settlement: Transactions settle in seconds rather than the 2-4 days typical of correspondent banking, allowing aid organizations to respond to evolving crisis situations in real-time.

Full Traceability: Every transfer maintains a verifiable record on the blockchain, providing complete transparency for donors, organizations, and auditors while reducing fraud risks.

Lower Cost Structure: By eliminating intermediary banks and reducing transaction fees, more of each donated dollar reaches intended recipients rather than being consumed by transfer costs.

Dollar Stability: RLUSD's backing by U.S. dollar deposits and short-term U.S. Treasuries protects purchasing power during transfers, ensuring aid value remains constant across borders.

Scaling Stablecoin Infrastructure for Global Good

RLUSD surpassed a $900 million market cap in less than a year since launch, demonstrating rapid adoption and scalability for enterprise-grade stablecoin infrastructure. The stablecoin operates on both the XRP Ledger and Ethereum networks, providing interoperability across blockchain ecosystems.

By Q3 2025, RLUSD's market cap on the XRP Ledger alone reached $88.8 million, marking a 34.7% quarter-over-quarter increase. The growing adoption among major humanitarian organizations validates that stablecoins can provide a low-cost, near-instant alternative to traditional remittance services—potentially boosting economic resilience for billions of underbanked and unbanked communities.

Broader Implications for Financial Inclusion

The humanitarian applications being piloted extend beyond emergency aid delivery to address systemic financial inclusion challenges. Stablecoins like RLUSD offer potential pathways for underserved populations to access financial services that traditional banking infrastructure has failed to provide cost-effectively.

For unbanked populations in regions with limited financial infrastructure, blockchain-enabled payments can provide access to insurance products, emergency cash transfers, and microfinance opportunities that were previously unavailable or prohibitively expensive. The Kenya pilots with Mercy Corps Ventures specifically target these inclusion gaps, testing whether digital payment infrastructure can serve as a foundation for broader financial services access.

Water.org's expansion plans into Africa and Asia demonstrate how successful pilots can scale to reach millions of additional families. By reducing the cost and complexity of moving capital to microfinance institutions, blockchain payments enable these organizations to extend more loans to more families seeking water and sanitation solutions.

The Test of Scale

While early results from these partnerships show promise, the ultimate test lies in execution at scale. Maintaining fast, transparent transfers across multiple countries, currencies, and partners while preserving the compliance and audit rigor that institutional funders demand presents ongoing challenges.

Ripple emphasized that RLUSD's expanding partner list provides evidence that stablecoin infrastructure can scale responsibly. For NGOs, the value proposition centers on speed, cost control, and transparency. For aid recipients, the benefit is reliable access to funds that arrive when needed most—often during life-threatening emergencies where every hour matters.

As these organizations move from pilots to full-scale implementation, the coming months will reveal whether blockchain payment infrastructure can deliver on its promise to transform humanitarian aid delivery systems that have remained largely unchanged for decades.

Conclusion

Ripple's partnerships with World Central Kitchen, Water.org, GiveDirectly, and Mercy Corps demonstrate that blockchain technology can deliver measurable humanitarian impact beyond financial speculation. By enabling 24/7 cross-border payments that settle in seconds rather than days, RLUSD addresses critical infrastructure gaps in global aid delivery that have long frustrated relief organizations responding to emergencies.

The shift from days-long settlement times to near-instant transfers means more meals delivered during disasters, faster capital deployment for clean water access, and emergency cash reaching families in crisis before situations deteriorate further. With a $900 million market cap achieved in under one year, RLUSD validates that enterprise-grade stablecoins can scale rapidly while maintaining the stability and compliance that humanitarian organizations require.

These initiatives showcase the convergence of innovation and purpose—proving that cryptocurrency infrastructure, when thoughtfully applied, can help rebuild lives while advancing financial inclusion for underserved communities worldwide.

DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, advertising, or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any securities. This content is not sponsored by or affiliated with any of the mentioned entities. Investments in cryptocurrencies or other financial assets carry significant risks, including the potential for total loss, extreme volatility, and regulatory uncertainty. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Always consult a qualified financial professional and conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions.

Sources

1. Ripple Official Press Release - Global Nonprofits Turn to Ripple Payments
2. Coin Edition - Ripple's $900M RLUSD Stablecoin for Humanitarian Aid
3. Coindoo - Blockchain and RLUSD Stablecoin Power Global Humanitarian Aid
4. TronWeekly - Ripple Partners with Top Nonprofits
5. Coinspeaker - Ripple Teams Up with WCK, Water.org for RLUSD Aid
6. Bitcoin Ethereum News - Ripple USD Gains Traction Among Global NGOs
7. World Central Kitchen Official Website
8. Water.org Official Website
9. Mercy Corps Official Website
10. GiveDirectly Official Website