Decaf's payment platform helped GiveDirectly deliver $1.3M in emergency relief to 3,765 Venezuelan families after June 2026 earthquakes. Using USDC on Stellar, the system achieved 86% of donated funds reaching recipients directly, beating traditional humanitarian programs by 20+ percentage points. Payments arrived with median delivery time of two minutes and under 0.5% failure rate.
When earthquakes struck Venezuela in June 2026, GiveDirectly faced an immediate challenge: no viable conventional banking route existed due to sanctions, and distributing physical cash at scale was impractical. Decaf adapted its payment platform, working alongside Airtm and using USDC on Stellar, to deliver $1.3 million directly into recipients' existing Venezuelan bank accounts via Pago Movil. The system required no recipients to create accounts or download apps; they simply received WhatsApp notifications confirming deposits. The results exceeded expectations: 86% of donated funds reached recipients as cash assistance, above GiveDirectly's initial target of 70-80%. Payments arrived within a median time of two minutes, with a failure rate below 0.5%. Recipients spent assistance on essentials including food, water, healthcare, and household needs, with 95% reporting improved stability and wellbeing and 60% using funds to restart income-generating activities.
