Quick answer: In 2020, the Danish Red Cross, Mercy Corps and the fintech hiveonline published a joint study on whether blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) fit humanitarian aid. Their conclusion was measured: no existing commercial blockchain fully met the sector’s needs, but several platforms partly did, and a shared “blockchain for good” could help aid reach more people faster. The report evaluated Ethereum, Hyperledger and Hedera Hashgraph among others.
Updated 07/17/2026. By Jake Claver. Educational content, not investment advice.
Humanitarian aid has a paperwork and trust problem. Cash and vouchers pass through many hands, records live in incompatible systems, and donors want proof their money reached people. Blockchain gets pitched as the fix for all of this. What makes the Danish Red Cross, Mercy Corps and hiveonline study useful is that it does not oversell. It asks what actually fits, and says plainly where nothing did yet.
This is an educational look at a research report, not an investment case for any token. The technology assessment stands separately from any question about asset prices.
The report and who made it
The document is “The Next Generation Humanitarian Distributed Platform,” published in November 2020 as a collaboration between the Danish Red Cross, Mercy Corps and hiveonline. It is grounded in real fieldwork: 35 survey participants and 39 direct interviews with NGO implementers, blockchain developers, academics and founders, conducted between July and September 2020. The full report PDF lays out the methodology and findings, and a ReliefWeb mirror carries the announcement.
As Signe Yde-Andersen of the Danish Red Cross framed it, the report is “a call to action for a blockchain for good, to drive investment and unlock innovation in the sector.” The pitch is a shared, sector-wide platform rather than each agency building its own silo.
What the research found about existing platforms
The most honest line in the report is its verdict on the tools available. In its own words: “While no existing commercial blockchain or DLT solutions were found to fully align with the unique requirements of the humanitarian sector … a variety of existing platforms have partially met the needs. For example, Ethereum’s easy to use token structures and many sidechains, Hyperledger’s Open Governance model and Hedera Hashgraph’s high throughput and low transaction cost are all features beneficial to humanitarian use cases.”
That is the accurate reading: each platform brought something, none was a complete fit, and Hedera Hashgraph was cited specifically for throughput and low cost. The report treats these as ingredients to weigh, not winners to crown.
Where blockchain actually helps aid
The study identifies concrete use cases rather than vague promise. The strongest are cash and voucher assistance, supply-chain and logistics tracking, and donor engagement, with further potential in digital identity and natural-capital or carbon tracking. The common thread is verifiable, shared records that cut duplicated effort and give donors real-time visibility, which the report links to lower costs and transaction fees for aid organizations.
The Danish Red Cross is not theorizing from the sidelines. Its page notes existing blockchain work, including Community Inclusion Currencies in Kenya reported to serve more than 200,000 vulnerable people across roughly 70 communities, and hiveonline’s Blockchain for Good program frames the wider initiative. These are practical deployments, not pilots on paper.
Reading this honestly for the Hedera ecosystem
Because this report names Hedera, it gets cited in ecosystem discussions. The fair reading matters. The report lists Hedera Hashgraph as one platform whose throughput and low cost are useful for humanitarian workloads, alongside Ethereum and Hyperledger. It does not declare Hedera the chosen platform, and it explicitly says no single solution fully fit the sector at the time. A verified mention in a credible NGO study is a real data point about where a technology is being evaluated. It is not a partnership announcement, and it carries no implication about token value.
Why this matters
For the aid sector, the takeaway is that blockchain is a tool with specific, tested uses (cash transfers, supply chains, donor transparency) rather than a cure-all. For anyone evaluating a blockchain ecosystem, studies like this are the kind of primary source worth trusting: named organizations, dated fieldwork, and a willingness to say what did not work. That honesty is what makes the document useful years after publication.
Common questions
What is the Next Generation Humanitarian Distributed Platform report?
It is a November 2020 study by the Danish Red Cross, Mercy Corps and hiveonline on how blockchain and distributed ledger technology could serve humanitarian aid. It draws on 35 survey responses and 39 interviews conducted between July and September 2020 and calls for a shared, sector-wide blockchain platform.
Did the report choose Hedera as the humanitarian blockchain?
No. The report found that no existing commercial blockchain fully met the sector’s needs. It listed Hedera Hashgraph’s high throughput and low transaction cost as beneficial features, alongside Ethereum’s token structures and Hyperledger’s open governance. It named useful ingredients, not a single winner.
What humanitarian problems can blockchain actually help with?
The report highlights cash and voucher assistance, supply-chain and logistics tracking, and donor engagement, with further potential in digital identity and carbon or natural-capital tracking. The value comes from shared, verifiable records that reduce duplication and improve transparency.
Has the Danish Red Cross used blockchain in the field?
Yes. Its materials reference existing work including Community Inclusion Currencies in Kenya, reported to serve more than 200,000 vulnerable people across roughly 70 communities, as part of its broader blockchain-for-good initiative.
Is this an endorsement to invest in any blockchain token?
No. This is an educational summary of a humanitarian technology report. It is not investment advice, and a technology being studied for aid use says nothing about the price or investment merit of any related token.
Receipts
- Mercy Corps: The Next Generation Humanitarian Distributed Platform (PDF)
- Danish Red Cross: Next Generation report page
- hiveonline: Blockchain for Good
- ReliefWeb mirror of the report
- Hedera
This content is educational only. It is not tax, legal, or investment advice. Check primary sources and speak with a qualified professional before making financial decisions.
