Introducing Vite: ridesharing designed for the blockchain generation
A Rideshare Concept that Distribute Value Fairly amongst Riders, Drivers & Cities
Emerging markets have long been an euphemism for the instability of third-world economies. A perpetual work in progress, never to reach stability needed for streamlined flow of goods and services. Their volatile nature served only to deter prospective investors, and all the while “true and tried” models fostered nothing but exploitation among the local workforce. Nowhere was this more evident than in mainland Africa.
The solution to this problem has been brewing in a small island nation of Mauritius, embedded in the Indian Ocean. A cadre of young, tech-savvy local entrepreneurs built up a multinational team of individuals focused not only on exploring a different approach to affordable public transport, but aiming to strengthen the communal ties in the process. Their incentive managed to attract a significant political clout, including Ameenah Gurib, a biodiversity scientist who in 2015 became the first woman to be elected President of Mauritius. It quickly became obvious that this ambition always had the continent in sight.
Vite is a next generation peer to peer ridesharing service built on the blockchain and powered by Vitecoin Token (VT).
Why the Need for Vitecoin?
While cryptocurrency stopped being an unfamiliar term in the mainstream economy, especially among the millennial audience, it still raises eyebrows whenever it offers a business plan that surpasses the common relationship between mining the currency and putting it in a virtual wallet. It is becoming clear that what used to be a strictly Internet phenomenon is quickly gaining a foothold in the Real World.
Emerging markets are notorious for their instability: it is often risky to carry a wad of cash around, while bureaucracy hampers even the simple tasks like getting a credit card, prolonging identity verification with the local banks; these problems transcend local borders. And this is the core issue at stake here: creating one universal method for simple, yet safe business settlement, acceptable at any place, at any time.
The borderless nature of Vitecoin is not its only advantage: there is no third party to impose unfair taxation, limit transfer funds or manipulate personal data. The transaction doesn’t come with a mountain of caveats and is conducted at a tap of the screen of a smartphone.
The European Connection
The Vite team was selected to participate in the Aeternity Venture’s Blockchain Incubator Program in Bulgaria. The team spoke at a packed conference hall, and connected with top European blockchain experts and market influencers. The Vite team will leverage Aeternity’s network in order to further its market presence across Europe.
It will be too arrogant to think crypto will not be widely used because it is unfamiliar — Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs
Tokenizing payments in ridesharing:
Payments on the Vite platform will be completed using cryptocurrency, and encouraged by a 10% discount for its users. While riders can still use fiat money for payment, the intention is to make Vitecoin the sole accepted medium after widespread adoption, which will in turn further increase the demand and value of the coin.
Will riders use Vitecoin at all?
Yes! It’s exciting to see cryptocurrencies going mainstream and we believe Vitecoin is the future of payments in ridesharing. Big telecommunication networks such as MTN and Vodafone introduced mobile money e-wallets to African nations — people use them to store cash, pay their bills and transfer money to their friends and families. This represents a marked improvement over carrying cash on your person or dealing with huge credit card fees imposed by banks. All you need is a PIN authorization and you’re good to go(similar to a private key in the case of Vitecoin). According to a report by the Bank of Ghana, around $500 million transactions were made through mobile money platforms in 2017 alone. For the average African consumer, the concept of digital transaction stopped being an unknown.
But here’s the key point: while mobile money users need to make a regular visit to a designated merchant in order to stock up their e-wallets with cash, Vitecoin is designed to eliminate the middleman. All Vitecoin transactions are entirely digital, meaning that riders can purchase and use Vitecoin at the tap of a button within the app, without fear of internal network failure that is common occurrence with mobile money platforms.
Vision of a Streamlined Commute
Therefore, the core goal of the Vite team is a simple on and relies on a two-pronged approach. The consumer incentive is to be ensured through making Vitecoin the sole layer of exchange between riders and drivers, removing the risk caused by carrying extra cash and the hassle of credit card fees. It is a pragmatic, technocratic necessity. The other side of Vite model is giving back to the community and simultaneously expanding the consumer base.
Social Impact of Vite
The rideshare economy has been known to use predatory practices as soon it gains a foothold on a market. Vite is circumventing this by offering a model that is mutually beneficial for riders, drivers, and cities involved. Unlike the huge cuts charged by competition, slicing up to a quarter of driver income, Vite drivers keep what they earn, with the catch that 5–10% of their income goes into Vite Impact Fund (VIF), maintaining technological infrastructure of the service and funding social causes.
These goals will be tailor-made to fit with local needs and cultures. Rather than painting with broad strokes, Vite intends to approach each local issue separately and distribute the funds accordingly. Special focus will be put towards enabling local taxi drivers to become partners, ensuring that their industry is not disrupted, but strengthened by Vite’s presence.
How Big are the Emerging Markets?
According to Tony Seba, a Stanford economist, private car ownership will drop by 80% in the US by 2030. And this is a global phenomenon. Millennials are not responding favourably to the old adage that each household should own at least one vehicle. Combined with a widespread smartphone adoption, the ridesharing economy is expected to grow eight-fold by 2030, going into the $285 billion territory.
Africa’s urban transport market currently stands at more than four billion dollar annually, and is experiencing growth. There are over 40 emerging market cities with a population of a million or more, that do not have any ridesharing service. This points out to an enormous market potential for Vite, which intends to move from a successful Mauritius testing towards South Africa, with plans of development in Asia and Europe.
Growing Locally, Scaling Globally
In Africa, the future is urban. With 40 cities with a population of a million or more, and without any ridesharing service available, the revenue impact potential of the next few years is immense. And the service provider who comes on top will be the one who streamlines it the most at both ends of the bargain. These are the facets of Vitecoin: growing a market presence through cutting-edge technology, paying care to the local issues and in turn scaling its business globally. The strength of a digital coin is that it has more than two sides, and that each one can be cared for simultaneously and efficiently.
We highly recommend following the Vite website and other official media channels for the latest progress updates about incoming private sale, Pre-ITS and Main ITS.
