It appears Palau, a country in Oceania, is considering adopting digital and blockchain technology, as it partnered with Ripple, the team behind XRP, to help develop its digital currency.
With this partnership, Palau would give birth to a USD-backed digital currency that would help facilitate trans-national payments. According to Ripple in an announcement, the government-backed national stablecoin could launch in the first half of 2022.
Ripple said the digital would not be another CBDC, instead, it would serve as an alternative to it. The crypto firm would be providing the country with technical, business, design, and policy support. It is also believed that issuing a stable coin on the XRP Ledger would be giving the Oceania country a viable CBDC opportunity.
While commenting on the development, Palau President Suangel Whipps Jr. pointed out that the implementation of this initiative would offer greater financial access and inclusion to the citizens of the country.
Available information shows that the country’s vulnerability to the effect of climatic change even prompted the partnership, as Palau believes Ripple’s carbon-neutral energy fits the job. XRP ledger is carbon-neutral and its efficiency is 120,000 times more than Proof-of-Work blockchains.
James Wallis, VP of Central Bank Engagements at Ripple expressed excitement with the partnership: “We are excited to be working with Palau to achieve its financial and climate-related goal.”
Wallis continued that Ripple would be using its tech and experience in the space to help the country make an impact.
Ripple’s Climate Change Effort
When it comes to climate and environment, Ripple is one project at the front. You would recall that earlier this year, it announced its goals of achieving carbon Zero by 2030. First, in its step, it made XRP carbon zero by utilizing the EW zero tool, which is an open-source solution from Energy Web. It enables businesses to purchase tokenized renewables to help them achieve carbon net-neutral.
Ripple’s efforts about the environment have been very great. It recently participated in the funding round for Nelnet Renewable Energy to help raise funds for environmental purposes in the US.
The firm is still in the face of battle with the SEC for allegedly offering unregistered securities for sale. It also sued the Co-founder for abating the crime. Although, the case is gradually settling and it is expected to end in 2022.
The native token of XRP suffered a big loss when the case began and up till this moment, it has not been able to recover completely. The token is currently trading for $1.05.
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