What Coala Pay does

Coala Pay is a payment platform purpose-built for humanitarian aid delivery, founded in 2023 in San Francisco with 1-10 employees. It serves international humanitarian organizations, NGOs, and institutional donors by moving cross-border aid funds into high-friction corridors where traditional banking is slow, expensive, or unavailable. The company addresses three structural problems in the aid sector: multi-week settlement cycles on correspondent banking rails, value leakage through intermediary and FX fees (often 25%+), and the inability of traditional banks to operate in restricted or conflict-affected markets.

The core technology is a blockchain-based digital orchestration layer built on the Stellar network that uses USDC stablecoins for settlement. The platform combines non-custodial architecture (organizations retain 100% of fund ownership), smart contracts with if/then logic for milestone-based and trigger-based payments, multi-signature approval workflows that mirror humanitarian governance, and an Oracle system that ingests external data feeds (FAO SWALIM drought indices, weather, satellite data) to execute anticipatory disbursements when thresholds are met. Supporting products include the Billy App for last-mile data collection combined with payments, Last Mile Aid (LMA) for off-ramp and FX management, and immutable on-chain audit trails with timestamps and FX rates. The platform achieved ISO 27001 certification in May 2026.

The business model is transaction-based with platform fees, a 0.5% conversion fee, off-ramp fees, and gas fees averaging around $0.70 per transaction. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeting humanitarian organizations and NGOs (named deployments include Save the Children International, Norwegian Refugee Council Somalia, and Search for Common Ground), with technology partnerships supporting the stack: Para for wallet infrastructure, Pimlico for gasless transactions, and corridor-specific off-ramp partners (Yellow Card in Malawi, e-Dir in Somalia, M-PESA in Kenya). The company has raised approximately $4.3M in cumulative funding across pre-seed, seed, and earlier rounds, with the most recent being a $3.5M seed in February 2025 led by Castle Island Ventures.

Name

Coala Pay

Legal name

Coala Pay

Website

https://coalapay.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Coala Pay is a blockchain-based payment platform that moves institutional humanitarian aid funds into high-friction corridors using USDC stablecoins, smart contracts, and an Oracle trigger system, serving international NGOs, humanitarian organizations, and institutional donors with non-custodial settlement and audit-ready reporting.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cross-Border Payment Infrastructure (Humanitarian Aid)

SIC

Commodity Contracts Brokers & Dealers (6221)

akta.pro primary industry

Tokenization, Digital MRV-Linked Credits & On-Chain Carbon Infrastructure (Digital assets, provenance) (EUABAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Clearinghouses, Settlement & Post-Trade Infrastructure (Clearing, custody, reconciliation) (EUABAAAC), Carbon Credit Brokerage & Trading (Spot, Forward, Structured Products) (EUABADAB)

Keywords

• Humanitarian payment infrastructure
• Stablecoin cross-border payments
• Blockchain aid delivery
• Programmable money transfers
• NGO treasury rails

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Platform Transaction Fees: Platform fees charged on payments, with updated fee structure reflected across all payment flows. Includes per-transaction fees, conversion fees (0.5%), and off-ramp fees.
2. Gas Fees: Blockchain network fees for on-chain transactions, with average gas fees around $0.70 per transaction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Coala Pay is a blockchain-based payment platform purpose-built for humanitarian aid delivery that moves institutional funds into high-friction corridors using USDC stablecoin settlement on the Stellar network. It enables near-instant cross-border payments, milestone-based and trigger-based disbursements via its Oracle system, multi-signature approvals, and immutable on-chain audit trails, while remaining non-custodial so organizations retain full control of their funds.

Product overview

Coala Pay is a comprehensive aid delivery ecosystem that merges programmable payments with real-time data to ensure resources reach the right people instantly, even in the most complex environments. The core platform is Coala Pay, which serves as a programmable payment infrastructure using blockchain as a digital orchestration layer and stablecoins for settlement. The ecosystem includes the Oracle (trigger-based autonomous settlement), Billy App (data collection and payments), and Last Mile Aid (offramp management). The platform enables milestone-based payments, multi-sig approvals, and generates immutable audit trails on-chain. All funds move via stablecoin settlement (USDC), bypassing traditional banking delays while maintaining institutional compliance and audit-ready reporting.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Billy: Digital wallet and surveys app that brings data collection and payments together, allowing recipients to complete surveys and receive funds directly in the same application
• Last Mile Aid (LMA)
• Billy App

Products and services

• Coala Pay Platform A programmable payment infrastructure for humanitarian aid delivery that enables institutional funds to move into high-friction corridors with near-instant speed using blockchain and USDC stablecoin settlement on the Stellar network. Used by INGOs, UN agencies, and large NGOs to disburse grants, cash transfers, frontline payments, and vendor settlements.
• Coala Pay Oracle Coala Pay's trigger-based settlement data layer that reads external feeds (FAO SWALIM, weather, satellite) and automatically executes smart contract-based fund disbursements when predetermined thresholds are met, enabling anticipatory action funding for humanitarian response.
• Billy App Community engagement application within the Coala Pay ecosystem that combines survey/data collection with payment disbursement, enabling recipients to complete surveys and receive funds directly in a single flow for real-time insight alongside every transaction.
• Last Mile Aid (LMA) Infrastructure enabling humanitarian organizations to submit off-ramp requests, receive FX rate quotes, select off-ramping terms, and approve payments to convert stablecoins into local currency for last-mile delivery to recipients.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% execution success rate with perfect delivery record since 2023
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability3 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• ParacoreTechnology or IntegrationPara is Coala Pay's wallet and payments partner, providing wallet infrastructure that enables humanitarian funds to move into restricted corridors with 100% reliability. Para's COO Aditi Sriram endorsed Coala Pay as building with credibility and urgency rare in the sector.
• Billy AppcoreTechnology or IntegrationBilly is a community engagement app in the Coala Pay ecosystem that combines data collection and payments, allowing recipients to complete surveys and receive funds directly in the same platform. Used for last-mile aid delivery in Kenya deployment.
• Yellow CardsupportingTechnology or IntegrationOff-ramp provider enabling conversion from USDC to local Malawian kwacha. Used in Save the Children SHIFT pilot for disbursements to youth-led groups. Daily off-ramp caps noted as a limitation being addressed.
• e-DirsupportingTechnology or IntegrationVetted Somali off-ramp provider for NRC Somalia early action pilot, converting USDC to Somali shillings. Two of three partners received local-currency bank deposits within 30 minutes of off-ramp initiation.
• Stellar Development FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoala Pay builds on the Stellar blockchain network. Featured in Stellar Community Fund spotlights, with Melyn (Coala Pay) discussing building aid funding infrastructure on Stellar and why blockchain belongs where banking does not reach.
• PimlicosupportingTechnology or IntegrationInfrastructure partner enabling gasless transactions on Coala Pay, meaning users no longer need ETH pre-loaded to their accounts to perform transactions. Reduces friction for non-technical humanitarian staff.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Beam: Blockchain-based cash and voucher transfer platform purpose-built for humanitarian aid delivery. Closest direct competitor serving the same NGO/UN customer base with stablecoin-based last-mile payments.
• GiveDirectly: Operates direct cash transfer programs for humanitarian aid recipients across Africa. Comparable in targeting the same 'cash-to-recipient' use case Coala Pay enables, though uses traditional rails rather than stablecoins.

Emerging players

• Kotani Pay: African on/off-ramp infrastructure enabling crypto payments for humanitarian and remittance use cases across Kenya, Nigeria, and Uganda. Overlaps with Coala Pay's off-ramp and last-mile delivery layer in similar corridors.
• Bitnob: Africa-focused bitcoin and stablecoin payments and savings platform serving remittance, payroll, and humanitarian-adjacent use cases. Emerging competitor with overlapping technology and customer segments.

Broad incumbents

• Stellar Development Foundation: Operator of the Stellar blockchain on which Coala Pay is built. Strategic partner and underlying infrastructure provider; comparable as the broader payment-rails layer in Coala Pay's stack.
• Circle: Issuer of USDC, the stablecoin Coala Pay uses for settlement, and operator of cross-border payment infrastructure. A larger incumbent whose rails Coala Pay relies on and partially competes with for enterprise payment volumes.
• Wise (TransferWise): Established cross-border payments platform targeting low-cost, transparent remittances. Broad incumbent whose core value proposition (cheaper/faster cross-border transfers) overlaps with Coala Pay's middle-mile use cases, but does not serve restricted humanitarian corridors.
• Ripple: Enterprise blockchain-based cross-border payment network serving banks and remittance providers. Broad incumbent competing for institutional cross-border settlement volume with a different chain but overlapping customer pain points.

Others

• Yellow Card: Pan-African crypto on/off-ramp provider and current Coala Pay off-ramp partner for Malawi. Comparable as adjacent infrastructure enabling stablecoin-to-local-currency conversion in the same corridors.

Regional players

• Chipper Cash: Pan-African mobile cross-border payments app serving consumers and businesses across 20+ African countries. Regional peer competing for the same underlying remittance and B2B payment flows in African corridors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/coalapay
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coalapay

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors7 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Coala Pay