Ripple, a Google-backed start-up that uses blockchain technology to settle financial transactions, has announced the University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) and has committed over $50 million in funding to 17 universities (listed below).

UBRI is a collaboration with top universities around the world to support and accelerate academic research, technical development, and innovation in the blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital payments.

These schools will determine their own research topics and priority areas of focus, while also partnering with Ripple to collaborate on research and technical development, create new curriculum and stimulate ideas and dialog among students, faculty, technologists and business leaders on topics of shared interest.

Ripple believes now is the perfect time to support research and study in the blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital payments at universities around the world.

The list of 17 universities includes:

  • Australian National University College of the Law

  • CITP at Princeton

  • CSAIL at MIT

  • Delft University of Technology (Netherlands)

  • Fundação Getulio Vargas (Brazil)

  • Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley

  • IIT Bombay

  • International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIIT-H)

  • Korea University

  • McCombs School of Business, UT-Austin

  • The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  • The University of Pennsylvania

  • UCL (University College London)

  • University of Luxembourg

  • University of Nicosia (Cyprus)

  • University of Oregon

  • University of Waterloo