Several DeFi and CeFi providers will offer loans to fisherfolk via Tracey, a seafood tracing app. Tracey is built by the Finnish consulting firm Tomorrow Explored (TX), WWF-Philippines, and the Web3 real-time data solution Streamr.
The Tracey project has announced the integration of several DeFi and CeFi lenders. Tracey helps small-scale fishers in emerging markets gain access to finance by sharing verified information on their seafood catch and trade data. The trade data is used by DeFi and CeFi lenders to ascertain creditworthiness and offer suitable micro-finance based on the eligibility of the borrower.
By integrating with Binance Smart Chain (BSC), Tracey users will gain access to lenders within the BSC ecosystem. The EasyFi lending protocol joins as an additional lender. EasyFi will conduct creditworthiness analysis and offer micro-finance through its own lending ecosystem. UnionBank, an already existing partner of the Tracey project, will continue offering CeFi lending solutions. In addition to enabling lending services, BSC will be used as the project’s blockchain solution.
The micro-SME market has traditionally been excluded from institutional finance due to the difficulty of ascertaining the creditworthiness of individuals who often hold no bank accounts. The financial product being integrated will enable De-Fi lenders to provide further liquidity into this highly untapped market.
Expanding to crypto lending in the Tracey project removes the geographical barriers to scaling the product, which exists with traditional banking institutes. Binance’s crypto exchange is the largest in the world by trading volume and a user count of 12 million users globally. Through this collaboration, the Tracey solution will be able to facilitate lending in 180+ countries.
Binance will participate in several rounds of pilots, the first of which is taking place this month in the Philippines for the WWF-led Fisheries Improvement program. Post-pilot, the product has the potential to roll out to other small-scale operators in FIP sites (Fishery Improvement Projects) as well as AIPs (Aquaculture Improvement Projects) around the world, and later, to support other micro-SME markets.
TX Managing Director Ben Sheppard explains:
“TX is engineering value from data to deliver solutions that help solve global challenges around poverty by improving the livelihoods and welfare of actors within the micro-SME markets of emerging countries.”
Susan Roxas, Fisheries and Finance Lead of the WWF Coral Triangle Program, says:
“We are excited by the innovative developments and the potential that this collaboration offers in solving challenges around first mile traceability of seafood. Industry members of the Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST) recognise the challenge in obtaining first mile data from small scale fishers. We believe that by providing key incentives, the appropriate technology is now making this possible.”
BACKGROUND
About TX – Tomorrow Explored
TX – Tomorrow Explored is an advisory and software development company specializing in engineering data economies through the application of blockchain technology and decentralized data. We are making technologies of tomorrow accessible for clients today. Our goal is to develop solutions that truly empower industries, organizations, and people by unlocking the value of data. Learn more at tx.company.
About Streamr
Streamr is working on the real-time data protocol of the decentralized web. This includes a scalable, low-latency, and secure P2P Network for data delivery and exchange. As part of the vision, Streamr is working on a real-time data Marketplace. Functional versions of each component exist today, with full decentralization being the project’s goal over the next few years. The project was started by real-time data veterans with backgrounds in algorithmic trading and finance markets. Streamr is being built by contributors from around the world and was crowdfunded via ICO with $30M in October 2017. To learn more, visit streamr.network.
About WWF-Philippines
WWF-Philippines has been working as a national organization of the WWF network since 1997. As the 26th national organization in the network, WWF-PH has successfully been implementing various conservation projects to help protect some of the most biologically-significant ecosystems in Asia. WWF-Philippines works to improve Filipino lives by crafting solutions to climate change, providing sustainable livelihood programs, and conserving the country’s richest marine and land habitats.
About Binance
Binance is a blockchain ecosystem composed of several arms to serve the greater mission of blockchain advancement and the freedom of money. Binance Exchange is the leading global cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, with users from over 180 countries and regions. The Binance ecosystem includes Binance Labs (venture capital arm and incubator), Binance DEX (decentralized exchange feature developed on top of its native, community-driven Binance Chain blockchain), Binance Launchpad (token sale platform), Binance Academy (educational portal), Binance Research (market analysis), Binance Charity Foundation (blockchain-powered donation platform and non-profit for aiding in sustainability), Binance X (developer-focused initiative) and Trust Wallet (its official multi-coin wallet and dApps browser). For more information, visit binance.com.
About EasyFi
EasyFi describes itself as a universal layer 2 lending protocol built for DeFi focused on scalability, composability, and adoption. It has been designed as an open network infrastructure to run on public networks to facilitate end-to-end lending & borrowing of digital assets and related financial products. The EasyFi network is blockchain agnostic, allowing cross-chain asset settlements. EasyFi uses a Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism. The network design is ethereum compatible and blockchain agnostic. easyfi.network