Ripple and UC Berkeley Launch UDAX Accelerator to Scale XRP Ledger Startups

TLDR:

• Nine startups completed the inaugural UDAX pilot, reporting 67% average product maturity increase over six weeks. 
• WaveTip migrated to XRPL Mainnet during the program while X-Card onboarded $1.5 million in inventory partnerships. 
• CRX Digital Assets grew tokenized volume from $39 million to $58 million using Ripple’s global payments network. 
• Participating teams achieved 92% average growth in fundraising confidence through mentorship and VC connections.

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Ripple has partnered with the University of California, Berkeley to establish the University Digital Asset Xcelerator (UDAX) program. 

The initiative aims to transform academic blockchain innovations into enterprise-ready solutions built on the XRP Ledger. 

Nine startups completed the inaugural six-week pilot cohort in fall 2025, receiving technical mentorship and venture capital connections.

Pilot Program Delivers Tangible Results for Participating Startups

The UDAX – UC Berkeley pilot brought together nine teams working across diverse sectors including tokenized capital markets, decentralized insurance, and creator economy platforms. 

Ripple engineers collaborated with UC Berkeley faculty and industry experts to guide founders through intensive development and fundraising preparation. 

The program concluded with a demo day at Ripple’s San Francisco headquarters, attended by XRPL developers, company leadership, and representatives from 13 venture capital firms.

Several teams achieved significant milestones during the accelerator. WaveTip successfully migrated its Twitch streamer tipping platform to the XRPL Mainnet and launched on the Chrome Web Store. 

X-Card onboarded over $1.5 million in inventory while establishing partnerships with merchant communities serving thousands of collectors. 

These outcomes demonstrated the program’s ability to accelerate product development and market entry.

Ripple announced the program through its official social media channels, highlighting the initiative’s focus on scaling enterprise solutions using XRP. 

The announcement emphasized the program’s role in connecting founders with Ripple’s engineering team and global venture capitalists. 

This direct access to technical resources proved instrumental for participating startups.

Startups Report Strong Growth in Key Performance Metrics

BlockBima tripled its active user base while building automated climate-risk microinsurance for vulnerable communities. 

The team credited the program’s fundraising mentorship, particularly guidance from Andrea Barrica, as their most valuable takeaway. 

Participating teams reported an average 67% increase in product maturity and 92% growth in fundraising confidence by the program’s conclusion.

CRX Digital Assets refined its strategy for exporting Brazilian credit offerings to international markets through Ripple’s global payments network. 

The company increased its tokenized volume from $39 million to $58 million during the accelerator. 

Meanwhile, Blockroll launched stablecoin-backed virtual cards for African freelancers, leveraging RLUSD momentum to enable global financial access.

Blockroll CEO Sadiq Isiaka explained the platform’s strategic direction for African markets. He noted that RLUSD enables the company to offer institutionally accepted stablecoins that streamline remittance settlements from the United States to Sub-Saharan Africa. 

The integration unlocks financial access use cases including stablecoin-backed debit cards with global functionality and wealth-building opportunities through stablecoin yields and tokenized U.S. stocks.

Program Strengthens Technical and Strategic Foundations

Additional cohort participants achieved notable progress across various domains. Spout finalized a complex equity tokenization model and secured multiple venture capital meetings through one-on-one mentorship sessions. 

EXFIL doubled its active user base and established over 50 strategic relationships while refining its real-time blockchain threat intelligence platform for investors.

Mintara Labs validated its go-to-market strategy for crypto-bank insurance products, generating revenue and underwriting initial deposits during the six-week period. 

WellArrive refined its vision into a strategic dual-sided marketplace model, addressing data fragmentation issues for researchers and users while developing a robust go-to-market strategy.

The program represents Ripple’s continued commitment to its University Blockchain Research Initiative, which connects academic research with practical blockchain applications.

 Future cohorts will build on the pilot’s success, supporting founders developing solutions for the Internet of Value through technical expertise and entrepreneurial resources from leading research institutions.

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