The project, powered by Binance Smart Chain (BSC), will provide micro-loans for SMEs and Micro Enterprises, with partners including WWF-Philippines, UnionBank, Easyfi, TX and Streamr
The Tracey project has announced its integration with the Binance Smart Chain. The aim of the project led by TX – Tomorrow Explored – is to improve financial inclusion in emerging markets through the development of the blockchain-enabled traceability and trade data app, Tracey. Collaborators include WWF-Philippines, Union Bank of the Philippines, Easyfi and Streamr.
Globally, 1.7 billion people are without access to institutional finance. These so-called “unbanked” individuals tend to be concentrated among poorer households, with about a quarter of unbanked adults living in the poorest 20% of households within their economy.
Tracey helps small scale fishers in emerging markets gain access to finance by sharing verified information on their seafood catch and trade. The trade data is used by lenders to determine creditworthiness and offer suitable micro-finance based on the eligibility of the borrower.
Low-cost and efficient access to capital can be an incentive for fishers to provide traders and processors with accurate data about their fish. Simultaneously, it can help address some of the traceability issues witnessed in the first mile of activity, while also providing improved catch data at landing to help inform fisheries management measures by local authorities.
Binance Smart Chain will be used as the blockchain infrastructure for the app and Easyfi decentralised lending protocol. The Tracey app will integrate with both Centralized Finance (UnionBank of the Philippines) and Decentralized Finance (Easyfi) lenders, enabling them to access the trading data captured by users of the app and offer micro-finance.
Expanding to crypto lending in the Tracey project removes the geographical barriers to scaling the product, which exist with traditional banking institutes. Binance’s crypto exchange is the largest in the world by trading volume and has 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 in March 2021 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).
About TX – Tomorrow Explored
TX, Tomorrow Explored, is an advisory and software development company specialising in engineering data economies through the application of blockchain technology and decentralized data.
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.
About WWF-Philippines
WWF-Philippines has been working as a national organisation of the WWF network since 1997. As the 26th national organisation in the network, WWF-PH has successfully been implementing various conservation projects to help protect some of the most biologically-significant ecosystems in Asia.