Microcredit as a key driver of Financial Empowerment
Unlocking opportunities for financially underserved people through accessible credit on-chain
Every individual's access to finance is a fundamental right, regardless of their social and economic status. It is often seen as a key enabler of the right to an adequate standard of living and the right to work, among others. Although access to finance is not explicitly recognized as a human right, it is seen as an important means of promoting economic and social development and reducing poverty, and efforts to promote financial inclusion can be seen as consistent with the broader goal of protecting human rights.
Unfortunately, financial exclusion is a widespread phenomenon that affects a significant portion of the world’s population. Financial exclusion refers to the inability of people to access financial services and products, such as a bank account, credit, savings, and insurance, limiting individuals’ ability to start or expand businesses, save for emergencies, and access basic goods and services. This lack of access has a direct impact on their quality of life, opportunities, and overall prosperity.
According to the World Bank, about 1.7 billion adults around the world are unbanked or underbanked, meaning they do not have access (or it is limited) to a formal financial institution. This is a significant challenge, as access to finance is essential to create wealth, managing risks, and achieving financial stability. The unbanked and underbanked face numerous barriers, including poverty, discrimination, different forms of oppression, low financial literacy, and lack of documentation. This creates a cycle of poverty that affects generations, limiting their opportunities and economic mobility.
Microcredit as a financial inclusion mechanism
Credit is an essential financial service that helps people invest in their businesses, education, and homes. However, traditional credit institutions often exclude those who are financially underserved, as they lack collateral or credit history. Additionally, microfinance institutions often charge high interest rates to compensate for the higher risk associated with lending to the poor. These high rates can sometimes make it difficult for borrowers to repay their loans, leading to default and further impoverishment.
Microcredit is a financial inclusion strategy that focuses on providing small loans to those who are excluded from traditional credit markets. The microcredit approach was pioneered by Muhammad Yunus, who founded the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh in the 1980s. The goal of microcredit is to empower the unbanked and underbanked by providing them with access to credit, allowing them to invest in their businesses, improve their living conditions, and escape poverty.
The microcredit market has grown significantly in recent years, with microfinance institutions (MFIs) serving over 140 million people worldwide. Microcredit has become a critical driver of financial inclusion, enabling millions of people to access credit, savings, and other financial services. According to a recent report by the World Bank, MFIs have disbursed over $130 billion in loans to low-income individuals and small businesses globally.
One of the significant advantages of microcredit is its scalability. Unlike traditional lending institutions, which require collateral and extensive credit histories, microcredit providers use a group-lending model that leverages social capital to manage risks. This allows MFIs to serve millions of people who are excluded from traditional credit markets. Additionally, MFIs provide financial literacy training and other support services to help borrowers manage their loans effectively.
Microcredit has proven to be a transformative strategy for financial inclusion, providing economic opportunities and empowering underserved communities. For example, a study by the Grameen Bank found that microcredit programs have a significant impact on poverty reduction, increasing the income of borrowers by 43% over two years. In India, a microcredit program targeted at women entrepreneurs helped increase their income by 80%.
Blockchain-based Microcredit
Blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize the microcredit industry by providing a secure, transparent, and decentralized platform for lending.
Blockchain-based microcredit platforms leverage smart contracts, which are self-executing agreements that enable lenders and borrowers to interact directly without intermediaries. This eliminates the need for traditional financial institutions and reduces the cost of borrowing, making credit more accessible to those who need it most. Smart contracts on blockchain can automate the loan application process, verification, and disbursement of funds, thereby reducing the time and costs involved in the manual processing of loans. Smart contracts can eliminate the need for intermediaries, such as banks or other financial institutions (who typically charge high fees for their services), resulting in reduced overhead costs. By eliminating intermediaries and streamlining the distribution and repayment of loans, there are fewer steps involved in the lending process and lower transaction fees for borrowers.
One of the key benefits of blockchain-based microcredit is that it provides a more efficient and secure way to manage the lending process. Blockchain technology enables lenders to verify the identity of borrowers, assess creditworthiness, and track loan repayment in real-time. This eliminates the need for manual verification, reducing the time and cost of processing loans. Additionally, blockchain technology provides an immutable record of transactions, ensuring that all lending activities are transparent and secure.
Another advantage of microcredit on-chain is that it can be used to incentivize borrowers to repay their loans on time. For example, some microcredit platforms use tokenization to reward borrowers for timely repayment. Tokens can be used to access additional credit or other financial services, creating an incentive for borrowers to repay their loans and build a positive credit history.
However, there are also some challenges associated with blockchain-based microcredit. One of the main challenges is ensuring that the technology is accessible to those who need it most. Many of the unbanked and underbanked may not have access to smartphones or other devices needed to use blockchain-based microcredit platforms. Additionally, there is a need for more education and awareness about blockchain technology and how it can be used to improve financial inclusion.
Despite these challenges, blockchain-based microcredit has the potential to transform the microcredit industry and empower millions of people around the world. By leveraging the benefits of blockchain technology, microcredit providers can increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve access to credit for the unbanked and underbanked.
With the evidence impactMarket has seen from the distribution of Unconditional Basic Income (UBI), blockchain technology in microcredit can also help reduce overhead costs significantly. This is achieved by streamlining and automating the money distribution processes and repayment processes, as well as the application processes and costs associated with it for the borrower.
Curious about what impactMarket, known for its global crypto-UBI program, the crypto wallet Libera, and its recently launched Learn & Earn, has to do with microcredit?
We are delighted to share that this is the next step in our journey toward financial inclusion and social justice. Soon, you will get to know about our successful microcredit pilot in Brazil and our new pilot in Uganda. Stay tuned!
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impactMarket (The Human Empowerment Protocol)
impactMarket provides accessible financial solutions to empower underprivileged people all over the world, unlocking opportunities and human potential. Our inclusive protocol is transparent, reliable, and borderless. It operates as a DAO on top of the Celo network, using $PACT as its governance token while running autonomously through smart contracts.
impactLabs (the company)
impactLabs Lda, based in Portugal, was founded in Nov 2020 by Marco Barbosa, Bernardo Vieira, Afonso Barbosa, and eSolidar. The company is focused on building accessible decentralized systems to unleash human potential and disrupt access to finance while driving DeFi adoption.
