Blockchain for Good Summit 2025: Putting People First in the Crypto Era

“We’ve learned that when deployed thoughtfully and inclusively, blockchain is more than a buzzword,” said Steliana Nedera, UNDP IRH Director, opening the 2025 Blockchain4Good Virtual Summit with a reminder of what truly matters. “Blockchain is not about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about people, inclusion and impact,” she affirmed. 

This principle guided the two-day virtual gathering, which welcomed over 1,000 registered participants and featured 65 expert speakers – technologists and development practitioners alike – united by a mission to use blockchain for people and the planet. Co-led by UNDP AltFinLab, Innofund and PositiveBlockchain, the summit entwined diverse voices, including humanitarians, innovators, and donors, into one powerful narrative across 20+ sessions. Each demonstrated how blockchain can turn promise into proof of impact – from crisis relief and digital identity to climate action. 

Cash in Crisis: Blockchain on the Frontlines 

In some of the world’s most fragile settings, blockchain is already putting cash in the hands of those who need it most. “Blockchain enables fast, low-cost, accessible financial services for the people that traditional systems leave behind,” said Stellar’s Anna Whitson-Diaz, recounting a landmark pilot that delivered $5 million in aid to displaced Ukrainians via blockchain wallets. Through this technology, recipients accessed funds at home for just a fraction of a cent in fees, while UNHCR saved nearly $30 million compared to conventional transfer systems. 

The same technology now powers payroll for healthcare workers in northern Syria, ending months-long payment delays in a region where being paid on time can mean the difference between continuity and collapse. AltFinLab’s Team Leader, Robert Pasicko, recalled a similar success in Afghanistan: a crypto-enabled transfer of $1 million reached women in rural villages overnight – an outcome that would have otherwise required a helicopter or a jeep with armed security. “Even a pilot with one village is okay! Once we know it works, we scale,” he urged. 

These stories show that blockchain can dramatically reduce transaction costs and accelerate delivery in crisis zones. Aid organizations are learning that smart partnerships and collaboration, not solo pilots, unlock these gains. UNDP’s work with Stellar, Cardano, and other tech partners is beginning to show how digital cash transfers can be deployed safely, and potentially at scale, even in complex conflict settings. 

Closing the Knowledge Divide 

One of the biggest roadblocks to meaningful blockchain adoption? Simply put, most people still don’t know where to start. The Blockchain4Good Summit didn’t shy away from this critical aspect; it tackled it head-on. UNDP’s first-ever Blockchain Academy for staff proved the demand is real: over 640 applications poured in from 134 countries, and 500 participants were selected from across the UN system (UNDP, UNCDF, UNV, and others) to begin their training. 

The aim isn’t to turn staff into coders, but to give them just enough fluency to recognize where blockchain could make a difference. Whether in supply chains, voting systems, or cash transfers, many are already spotting the potential and writing back with ideas for pilots. “Colleagues no longer think blockchain is only crypto,” shared AltFinLab’s Burcu Mavis. “They now see it as a practical development tool.” 

It is this shift in thinking that matters. As Cardano’s Giorgio Zinetti put it during the digital identity session: “If you look into digital identity for a few days, you realize that the possibilities are massive.” From one-click access to medical records to secure e-voting, the building blocks already exist – all that’s needed is a trusted ID layer! Cardano, Zinetti noted, offers just that: “the biggest layer-one with on-chain governance.” 

If the Blockchain Academy and the Blockchain4Good Summit have taught us anything, it is that education is the North-Star to inclusive digital transformation. UNDP, with the UN Innovation Network, anchors a Blockchain Community of Practice (CoP) that includes more than 1,000 colleagues from different UN agencies. The CoP ensures that learning doesn’t remain in silos, and that pilots quickly turn into shared progress.  

Join the UN Blockchain Community of Practice! 

Empowering Innovators and Impact Startups 

Scaling impact doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It happens when entrepreneurs get the backing they need to solve real-world problems. Throughout the Summit, 22 blockchain startups were spotlighted, each demonstrating innovative solutions and practical applications. 

• Take CELO Foundation’s pilot project in rural Kenya, described by Isha Warshay, Head of Ecosystem. Ultra-small loans were delivered to farmers via blockchain-enabled SMS technology with no internet or smartphone required. Each loan was the equivalent of “three coffees” in New York, yet the results were anything but small. One farmer used his loan to send a grandchild to school and plant 80 apple trees. “These trees will financially sustain three generations of my family,” he said when Isha visited months later.  

• Glenn Tan of the Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA) shared another story. EthicHub, a platform helping farmers (previously shut out of finance) bring their produce “all the way from farm to table.” As Glenn put it, “the project is restoring dignity to rural producers and creating new value chains along the way.” 

These examples showed that blockchain’s impact doesn’t come from individual initiatives or overhyped demonstrations. It takes patient, practical ecosystem work. Arun Maharajan of the UNICEF Venture Fund underscored how years of experimentation helped blockchain projects go from prototype to public sector adoption. “Some of our partners now win government RFPs,” he noted, pointing to a vaccine-tracking solution in Bangladesh that began with UNICEF support. 

It is this blend of field learning and mission-aligned funding that now underpins a new collaboration. Ahmed Amer of EMURGO Labs used a session to announce the launch of the SDG Blockchain Accelerator, co-led with UNDP and BGA. Built to back early-stage founders tackling real-world challenges, the Accelerator merges EMURGO’s technical muscle and funding with UNDP’s global development reach. “The SDG Blockchain Accelerator is a game-changer – not just for the UN and the international development ecosystem, but also for acceleration and innovation ecosystems at large. The way we will empower impact builders and ventures through this initiative will significantly influence the achievement of the SDGs,” said Teodor Petricevic, SDG Blockchain Accelerator Lead. 

Learn more about the SDG Blockchain Accelerator 

Transforming Philanthropy: Crypto for Giving 

As blockchain is reshaping payments and microloans; it is also reimagining how we give. A new generation of crypto-native donors is demanding speed and end-to-end accountability. Save the Children’s Paul Butcher recalled that his organization was one of the first international NGOs to accept Bitcoin back in 2013. Since then, they’ve raised nearly $10 million in crypto. But Butcher offered a caution: too many nonprofits still treat crypto like cashing a check, converting it to fiat before it ever reaches a program. “The serious crypto donor isn’t interested in converting to fiat,” he emphasized. “They want the impact kept on-chain.” 

Another proof of concept came from Giveth, the founder of Griff Green. Their decentralized giving platform has funneled over $4 million in donations to more than 5,000 social-impact projects across 11 blockchains (from Ukraine to Gaza to Turkey). Even NFTs stepped into the arena, with one digital artwork sale raising millions for Ukraine relief. These experiments show that under-funded crises can tap new donor pools if trust is built into the system.  

People, Not Tech: Lessons and Next Steps 

1. Community grows faster than code. When Afghan villagers or Syrian medics run the wallet, momentum builds on the ground. 

2. Education is the on-ramp. The Blockchain Academy’s overwhelming response reminded us that capacity-building is as vital as new pilots. 

3. Positive stories beat specs. As Cardano’s Frederik Gregaard urged, tell the good that’s already happening 
    

Throughout the Summit, UNDP was a connective tissue, coordinating the Blockchain Academy, catalyzing cross-sector partnerships and anchoring a growing ecosystem of public-good pilots. As Steliana Nedera noted, “digital tools like blockchain are not optional, but are essential to tackle the greatest challenges.” Because when we design blockchain around people, promise becomes proof, and proof becomes momentum, none of us can build alone.