Marshall Islands' UBI Program Secures $3M Backing Amid IMF Concerns
The Marshall Islands' universal basic income (UBI) program has secured $3 million in funding from prominent crypto and financial services executives.
The investment round was led by former Coinbase chief technology officer Balaji Srinivasan and Cumberland Labs CEO Tama Churchouse, who joined other unnamed investors in backing M1X Global, the firm behind the UBI initiative.
M1X Global's USDM1, a US dollar-pegged digital sovereign bond running on the Stellar blockchain, has been live since December. The IMF had raised concerns about the instrument in its report that month, citing risks to financial inclusion and cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
The Marshall Islands government responded by stating that the IMF's concerns were based on an assessment of the program before it was tested in practice, and that USDM1 follows a Brady-style framework supported by the IMF.