USDM1

USDM1 is a U.S. dollar-denominated financial instrument issued by the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). Each unit of USDM1 is redeemable at par in U.S. dollars, and is backed 1:1 by short-dated U.S. Treasury instruments held in segregated custody by a U.S. trust company.

USDM1’s issuance, collateral and redemption are governed under New York law in the style of a Brady bond, a framework developed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Nicholas Brady which has supported over $160 billion in issuances worldwide.

As a modernization of sovereign bond frameworks, USDM1 is compatible with existing financial infrastructure and integrates with regulated financial intermediaries in the United States. In the Republic of the Marshall Islands, USDM1 provides a distribution rail for government disbursements where limited correspondent banking coverage has made it difficult to reliably and efficiently reach citizens across all atolls.

Qualified citizens can elect to receive government benefits – including ENRA disbursements – through USDM1 in the Lomalo wallet, alongside traditional methods including physical checks and direct deposits. Citizen participation is voluntary.

For avoidance of doubt, USDM1 is not a cryptocurrency, a central bank digital currency or a stablecoin. It is a U.S. dollar-denominated sovereign obligation backed 1:1 by U.S. Treasury instruments, providing enforceable bondholder rights against the issuer and the underlying collateral. USDM1 is supervised by the Marshall Islands Monetary Authority (MIMA), with Cleary Gottlieb serving as issuer’s counsel.