Many parts of the world, including Western Europe and North America, have seen a constant increase in living standards in the last two centuries. Looking at the GDP alone, one can see the changes that have taken place in the developed world. For example, between 1820 and 1998, the GDP in the US went up by a factor of 22. Countries in Western Europe, including the United Kingdom and Finland, reported just as significant increases. Unfortunately, the growth has not been as significant in other parts of the world, resulting in substantial human costs.
It is not uncommon for well-to-do countries to help others in Africa and Asia, although such efforts have proven to be inefficient in raising living standards. There are many reasons for the failure, but there is a recognition that some of the tools used in the attempts were inappropriate. There is a need to find new tools for improving the standards of living in Africa and Asia. The World Bank has been pushing for financial inclusion for a while now to reduce poverty and promote inclusive growth. Financial inclusion, of course, demands that friendly financial services are availed in those under-developed parts of the world.
While the under-development in Asia and Africa is overwhelming, it also provides plenty of room to grow. Imagine the changes that could be made in just 50 years! Many of the common causes of premature death today would be a thing of the past. The standard of living would be unimaginably high. Millions of lives would be saved. Inadequate housing would become a thing of stories, and political systems would evolve, nearly eradicating today’s endemic corruption. Then, possibly, lasting peace would be within reach. These are some of the things L-Pesa Microfinance had in mind when launching LPK Kripton in 2018.
About L-Pesa Microfinance
L-Pesa Microfinance is a fintech company that was set up with the goal of improving people’s lives by providing efficient access to credit and associated financial services. The company especially hopes to take advantage of the market gaps in the financial services provided to the developing world. The biggest thing the company has had to contend with is the ability to fund loans and user acquisition. At its launch, the company realized the need to use technology such as biometric identity, the blockchain, and big data.
Soon enough, the company had harnessed market forces and built tech and a proprietary credit scoring model that would allow it to scale microlending quickly to developing countries at a low loss ratio. Moreover, they made the process hugely automated so that they serviced all loans. The team, headed by Ron Ezra Tuval, was made of experts all the way from Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya, dealing with credit approvals, customer service, and background checks. There were even virtual operation models for marketing and accounting, which made it possible to automate most of the loan underwriting process.
With the company’s scalable and stable technology, it was poised to grow. Things were looking up. The team had set up an ICO to get the necessary capital to avail money to borrowers. There was an unlimited opportunity, and their goals seemed very close to becoming a reality. And then, they went silent.
The LPK L-Pesa Token
L-Pesa set up a token called LPK. The LPK is a standard ERC20 token that allows you to use the LPK applications. It unlocked the ability to participate in the token offerings in the project and provided access to functionalities that were exclusive to the network. Over time, the team would release more functionalities to help increase the utilization of the network through tokens. Campaign participants could send contributions in ETH. It was incredibly promising because you would not be investing in a new product but in an existing company whose track record is impressive.
LPK Crypto comes back, full-force
While not much has been happening in the public eye, the L-Pesa team was working behind the scenes, what with apps like TALA and Branch already active in the East African countries, stealthily heading toward their ambitious vision. As it is, the Kripton Crypto is making some exciting moves. On their Twitter account, the team just announced that LPK is now a Multi-Chain Token. They are currently working on an LPK bridge that is currently getting tested on Anyswap Exchange to allow LPK holders to change LPK tokens across three networks – Polygon, BSC, and Ethereum.
Sources close to the development team reveal that the LPK currency team is now working on a new website that will be hosted in the old company domain. Apparently, everything is going on according to plan, including the integration of LPK Dapp. The website will provide listing and updated information on a number of cryptocurrency websites. Whether or not that is true remains to be seen. So far, though, the buzz the team is creating is worth investigating. Who knows, you might find yourself collaborating with a team that does actually change the world as we know it!
For more info, check out the project website here.
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