Introduction
There is a very strong case to be made for a fully decentralised banking system. In the next four pages, we will make this case.
We will highlight the weaknesses of the current banking system and outline our solution. We will demonstrate how this solution can improve individual well being, support businesses and improve the financial resilience of communities, countries and the global economy as a whole.
We will also make the business case for BABB, summarising the business model and the market opportunity. Finally, we will include the key details of our token sale.
Problem
There are seven billion people in the world, and more than two billion of them are ‘unbanked’. This means they don’t have access to basic financial services. Being ‘unbanked’ leaves people reliant on cash, making it hard to save money, take out a loan safely, or send money across any kind of distance.
In an increasingly connected world, 30% of the population is disconnected from the economy.
The current banking system isn’t working for these two billion people. Anyone who doesn’t have access to a bank account or financial services is being held back. An initiative in Mexico to ‘bank the unbanked’ found that opening bank accounts for low-income customers led to a 7.6% increase in the number of business owners, a 1.4% increase in employment and a 7% increase in average income. On a broader level, financial exclusion is responsible for the perpetuation of poverty, poor living standards, exclusion from education and poor health.
The current banking system isn’t working for the ‘banked’ either; the other five billion people in the world. Accenture has recently reported that ‘banking the unbanked’ represents a $380 billion market opportunity. And yet, the gatekeepers to the system (the banks) have done very little to tap into this opportunity.
Why?
Because they can’t. It’s expensive to get new users onboard. The majority of the ‘unbanked’ are small players – individuals, solopreneurs and small businesses. The revenue they would generate is lower than the cost to serve them. Therefore it simply isn’t profitable, or even viable, for traditional banks to serve these two billion people.
In other words, even though the unbanked people of this world represent a $380 billion market opportunity, the centralised banking system can’t do much to unlock it.
Solution
BABB is an acronym for Bank Account Based on Blockchain. We want to use blockchain technology to offer a bank account to anyone in the world, with built-in access to crowdsourced financial services. It is possible to significantly cut the cost of banking and financial services to offer game-changing service and bring two billion people into the global economy. We think this will be good for everyone.
The benefits of a decentralised model of banking don’t stop at financial inclusion. We can end high prices due to stagnant competition and data leaks due to poor security. We can also make the global economy less susceptible to shocks such as the 2008 financial crisis by decentralising the decision making. Banks are weak and vulnerable, compared to the distributed strength and security of a decentralised banking platform, in which each user is essentially their own bank
babb (Bank Account Based Blockchain)
