Circle Provides Grant to Help UN Modernize Humanitarian Aid Payments
Stablecoin issuer Circle has awarded a grant to support the United Nations’ effort to modernize its internal payment systems, with the goal of making humanitarian aid transfers faster, cheaper, and more transparent.
The grant, announced Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, will fund the UN’s Digital Hub of Treasury Solutions (DHoTS), a program focused on improving how money moves across the UN’s global operations. Circle has not disclosed the size or structure of the funding.
Building on previous UN stablecoin work
This initiative follows earlier collaborations between Circle and the UN. In 2022, Circle worked with the UN Refugee Agency and DHoTS to deliver USDC stablecoin payments to Ukrainians displaced by the war, marking one of the first large-scale uses of stablecoins in humanitarian aid.
According to UN Development Programme administrator Alexander De Croo, digital payments can make limited humanitarian budgets stretch further.
“Stablecoin payments allow us to make every dollar work harder,” he said, pointing to inefficiencies tied to legacy banking systems.
Each year, roughly $38 billion in humanitarian funding flows through outdated financial rails, often resulting in high fees, delays, and limited transparency. Blockchain-based payments, De Croo said, could help reduce these issues while improving accountability.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih emphasized that technology in aid isn’t just about efficiency:
“This is about using technology to uphold dignity and choice for people forced to flee, while maximizing impact for every dollar entrusted to us.”
The grant comes shortly after Circle launched the Circle Foundation in December, its philanthropic arm focused on financial inclusion and resilience, signaling an early commitment to supporting public-sector stablecoin use.
Stablecoins gaining traction in global payments
Stablecoins are increasingly central to global payments, now representing a $312.7 billion market, and are widely used for remittances, business settlements, and savings in regions with currency instability.
Bermuda moves toward an on-chain economy
At the same Davos event, Bermuda announced plans to place blockchain at the core of its financial system, partnering with Coinbase and Circle to develop a fully on-chain economy.
The initiative aims to tackle longstanding issues such as high transaction fees, limited banking access, and slow settlement times caused by global bank de-risking. Using dollar-denominated stablecoins and blockchain settlement, Bermuda hopes to bypass traditional banking networks and reduce costs for businesses, particularly small and medium-sized firms.
The rollout will start with a pilot using Circle’s USDC and Coinbase’s Base infrastructure, focusing on government and commercial payments, tokenization tools for financial institutions, and nationwide digital literacy programs.
