Libra Credit is a decentralized lending ecosystem that facilitates open access to credit anywhere and anytime based on the Ethereum blockchain. Libra Credit is a global initiative with a mission to provide financial inclusion and lower the cost of financial services. Powered by its proprietary big data, AI-based credit assessment technology and existing global partnership networks, Libra Credit has the expertise and capabilities to realize its mission. Libra Credit aims to offer a seamless digital lending process that can be completed in 5 steps: application, verification and credit assessment, confirmation, collateral deposit, and disbursement. The Libra Credit platform will focus on a dual-credit risk scoring mechanism that considers the creditworthiness of the pledged collateral as well as the credit information of the borrower. Borrowers will be able to pledge any crypto-assets as collateral and receive loans in their desired asset. Using smart contracts and a proprietary collateral valuation and liquidation system, Libra Credit will lock in agreed terms between borrows, lenders, custodians, guarantors and liquidators. Libra Credit was founded in 2017 and operates out of San Francisco, USA. They are backed by investors such as FBG Capital, GBIC, DHVC, Dekypt Capital, Crypto Parency, and others. Lu Hua, Co-Founder & CEO has experience in the payments, financing, and risk management industries. He was previously the CEO of moKredit, one of China’s top digital credit servicing companies. Lu was also the Head of Core Payments for PayPal China and the Head of Global Banking Platform for PayPal US. Dan Schatt, Co-Founder & COO has previously worked as the Chief Commercial Officer at Stockpile Inc., a leading fintech company, and as General Manager of Financial Innovations at PayPal. Howard Wu, Chief Scientist, he is a blockchain and cryptography expert who is a Founding Partner of Dekrypt Capital, Advisor of Blockchain at Berkeley, and Software Engineer at Google. He advises the project in a technical capacity and has received a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences from UC Berkeley. There are already quite a few blockchain lending projects, so competition is stiff. Libra Credit’s development progress is rather early compared to its competitors. The crypto-to-crypto lending part seems to be well thought out. However, not so much with the crypto-to-fiat part. According to the roadmap, crypto-to-fiat lending is scheduled to launch in 2018 Q3. With details lacking in the weekly blog update about crypto-to-fiat lending, it is difficult to gauge whether the proposed timeline is reasonable.
Power Ledger (POWR) is an Australian blockchain-based cryptocurrency and energy trading platform that allows for decentralized selling and buying of renewable energy. The platform provides consumers with access to a variety of energy markets around the globe and is meant to be scalable to various energy infrastructures and regulations. The market is based on a dual-token ecosystem operating on two blockchain layers, POWR and Sparkz. POWR tokens allow consumers and hosts providing energy to interface with the ecosystem and are protected through Smart Bond technology. POWR tokens can be converted into Sparkz tokens, which can be used for frictionless transactions in the energy exchange market. The initial coin offering for POWR tokens became the largest crowd funding project in Australia and the 14th highest in the world. Power Ledger’s team has immense expertise in both blockchain and electricity markets. They’re comprised of six Board of Directors in addition to over ten full time-team members. Power Leger’s five co-founders make up five of the six Board of Director seats of the company. The sixth board seat belongs to venture capitalist Bill Tai. Receiving his MBA from Harvard, Yai is a world-renowned venture capitalist. Tai’s experience is quite extensive; he is currently the Chairman of Treasure Data and also a Board Member of Bitfury and Boxer. Power Ledger’s POWR Presale sold out in just three days and raised over thirteen million dollars (AUD) in exchange for 190,000,000 tokens. After the presale, Power Ledger held an ICO to sell the remaining 160,000,000 POWR tokens allocated to Token Generation Event. After both rounds, funds raised totaled thirty-four million dollars (AUD). In addition to money raised from its presale and ICO, the Australian Government also awarded Power ledger a grant for 8 million dollars (AUD) to develop its technology and concept further. (Australia has one of the highest costs of electricity in the world and thus has a large stake in the overall success the company). Power Ledger provides a blockchain-based marketplace that can truly change the world. Taking power away from large energy companies, Power Ledger gives local communities the ability to sell their excess solar power to neighbors. Power Ledger has created an energy distribution and tracking platform that allows consumers buy carbonless, sustainable energy at lower prices than what’s offered by traditional electric companies. Power Ledger has plans to expand its operations to three continents worldwide and has amassed an army of powerful strategic partners to help achieve its goals. With the planned release of multiple applications for its platform in the immediate future, the project has positioned itself to disrupt multiple energy markets throughout the world creating a bright future for all participants involved in this green revolution.