GSX, Ubuntu Tribe partner on gold-backed digital payments

By Vriti Gothi

Global Settlement Holdings Inc. (GSX) has partnered with Ubuntu Tribe to launch gold-backed digital assets and real-time cross-border payments across Africa and Europe. The collaboration aims to bring over $5 billion of gold on-chain and support central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiatives through compliant, mobile-first platforms.

The partnership combines GSX’s institutional blockchain infrastructure with Ubuntu Tribe’s gold-backed digital asset platform, enabling instant, stablecoin-based foreign exchange (FX) and CBDC-ready payment rails. The initiative is expected to significantly reduce settlement times from days to seconds addressing persistent inefficiencies in cross-border transactions. Currently, sending $200 to Sub-Saharan Africa costs an average of 8%, with one-third of retail cross-border payments taking more than a day to settle, representing $96.4 billion in total flows to the region in 2024.

The collaboration will initially build on Ubuntu Tribe’s GIFT token, expanding gold-backed savings and investment products accessible via mobile devices. Through European VASP licensing and LBMA-aligned custody, users can hold fractional gold from as little as 1 milligram. Ubuntu Tribe has already facilitated over $10 million in transaction volume, with further growth anticipated.

GSX will deploy its fully reserve-backed stablecoin, SDGX, alongside a universal stablecoin framework, creating liquidity pools and enabling instant FX swaps for businesses and diaspora remittances. A pilot program is planned within the next 12 months, covering gold traceability and a cross-border FX corridor, with integration into regulated sandbox environments in priority African markets. Over the next two years, the partnership aims to publicly release programmable gold tokens and scale stablecoin FX liquidity pools, with broader institutional and government adoption targeted by 2028.

The collaboration also seeks to advance blockchain adoption across African markets, supporting governments and central banks with permissioned, compliance-first CBDC sub-networks and asset-backed national stablecoins.

“By fusing traceable, gold-backed savings with instant, compliant settlement, we’re bringing everyday users—from farmers to SMEs—into the same efficient financial fabric as institutions,” said Mamadou Kwidjim Toure, CEO of Ubuntu Tribe.

“Through advancements in blockchain, we can empower the entire continent of Africa, utilising the technology to provide a level of independence and speed not seen before. GSX was engineered for public-private collaboration at a national scale. Together with Ubuntu Tribe, we can accelerate cross-border commerce, FX liquidity, and CBDC readiness on infrastructure regulators can trust,” added Ryan Kirkley, CEO of Global Settlement Holdings Inc.