The problem
Palau uses the US dollar but has no central bank and no domestic payment system. Cash is flown in by commercial banks, there are no dedicated cash-security services, and residents outside Koror travel to the capital to reach an ATM. Many people are unbanked or underbanked.
What we built
I led the project for Ripple out of Singapore, responsible for managing, running and executing it. Ripple ran the full stack: the XRP Ledger as the payments ledger and Ripple’s CBDC Platform — issuer, operator, end-user wallets and ledger layers — with a bespoke administrative layer so the Ministry of Finance could oversee minting, burning, redemption and cash management.
The pilot
Volunteer government employees each received 100 PSC to spend at local merchants, who could redeem into their bank accounts. The Ministry reported 700+ transactions, over 400 of them merchant payments, and most participants said they would favour a national rollout. A digital payments bill — the Palau Digital Service Bill — went to Palau’s Congress in July 2025.
Why it matters
Palau shows that the technology is ready. The hard questions are legal mandate, custody of reserves and trust — lessons that apply to every small, dollarised or cash-heavy economy considering digital money.
Further reading
- My article: No Central Bank, No Problem? Lessons from Palau’s Sovereign Stablecoin — also on Medium and LinkedIn
- Video: Palau’s Minister of Finance explains the stablecoin
- Ripple: Palau launches US dollar–backed stablecoin
- IMF: Modernizing Palau’s Financial System (2026)
Digital assets & payments · Singapore