The Algorand Foundation announced a new strategic partnership with Paycode, a global leader in biometric and offline digital payment systems, to advance inclusive financial infrastructure across underserved and remote communities.

Paycode operates in countries including Afghanistan, Ghana, Zambia, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where large segments of the population remain offline and excluded from formal financial services. Through this collaboration, Paycode and Algorand will explore integrating public blockchain technology to strengthen digital identity systems, improve transparency, and unlock new models for delivering secure, inclusive payments at scale.

"This partnership brings blockchain into direct service of people who need it most," said Staci Warden, CEO of the Algorand Foundation. "Paycode is already reaching some of the most difficult places to serve. Together, we have the opportunity to make those systems more transparent, efficient, and trusted."

As part of the partnership, Paycode has selected Algorand as the blockchain to migrate its digital payment infrastructure on-chain, leveraging Algorand's high speed, security, and energy efficiency to power future offline-first payment systems.

Paycode's technology is currently used by more than 6 million individuals across 8 countries, many of whom live in offline, remote, and underserved regions. To date, Paycode has facilitated the secure disbursement of $250m in aid and social payments, helping drive financial inclusion through biometric identity, offline digital wallets, and real-time payments.

The two organisations will work together to host elements of Paycode's digital payment infrastructure on the Algorand blockchain, with a focus on supporting transparent disbursement of aid, integrating stablecoin-based settlement mechanisms, and building resilient, offline-first financial tools. The partnership reflects a shared mission to deliver systems that are scalable, interoperable, and secure, even in regions with little or no connectivity.