The United Nations Development Programme, or UNDP, has officially formed a new group called the Blockchain Advisory Group, often shortened to BAG. This initiative is meant to look into how blockchain technology can help improve public services and solve development problems across the globe.
The group was first introduced on June 3 at the Proof of Talk 2026 conference in Paris. The very first meeting was led by Haoliang Xu, and it mostly focused on financial inclusion and digital finance. People at the meeting talked about several barriers that still stop many from accessing financial services.
Global Projects Already Underway
UNDP is not starting from scratch. It already works with governments and industry partners in many regions, including Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Europe, Central Asia, and the Asia-Pacific area. Current projects are testing blockchain for things like digital payments, financial inclusion, climate finance, digital identity systems, supply-chain traceability, public procurement, and even how public services are delivered.
Along with the launch of this advisory group, UNDP’s AltFinLab organized a series of events called “Scaling Blockchain for Public Good.” These events included presentations of blockchain and decentralized AI projects that are already being tested in development programs. I think this shows that the organization is trying to move from just talking about possibilities to actually trying things out.
Meeting Plans and Membership
The Blockchain Advisory Group plans to meet twice each year. Future discussions are expected to cover digital governance, legal identity, financial inclusion, sustainability, climate initiatives, and the future of digital work. It seems like a pretty broad agenda, but perhaps that is necessary given how many areas blockchain could touch.
Right now, the group includes 26 organizations from across the blockchain industry. Some of the more well-known members are the Ethereum Foundation, Cardano Foundation, Algorand Foundation, Kraken, Sui Foundation, and Web3 Foundation. It’s quite a mix of different blockchain platforms and companies, which might help bring different perspectives to the table. But it remains to be seen how much real impact this group will have on policy or what kinds of projects will actually get scaled up.
