Ripio Credit Network (RCN) is a global peer-to-peer credit network based on cosigned smart contracts that facilitates connections between lenders and borrowers across the world, on any currency. It enables people across the globe to access credit, and to provide loans. The RCN token is a typical ERC-20 token. This protocol has the smart contract technology embedded into the Ethereum blockchain which facilitates peer-to-peer lending without the hefty transaction fees that are charged in traditional banking processes. The RCN token functions at the core of the system. The inherent value of the token is directly correlated to the demand for its use in the network. Based in Argentina, Latin America, Ripio was launched at the TechCrunch Disrupt in May 2016. Sebastian Serrano, founder and CEO of the Ripio Credit Network is a technology enthusiast. He along with his team of technology experts, analysts and developers have designed an impressive concept along with the website, whitepaper and its implementation within the last 2 years. The team comprises of David Garcia (SVP & Board Member), Eugenio Cocimano (Data Scientist), Antonio Ceraso (CTO & Lead Blockchain developer) and Agustin Aguilar (Smart Contracts Developer) among many others. Ripio started off with a primary objective - to democratize the digital economy in Latin America, by offering digital payment alternatives within everyone's reach in a region where 65% remain unbanked. The smart contract is an integral part of the underlying technology of the Ripio Credit Network. It is generated by the Wallet Provider and executed when it is matched by the Credit Exchange. This smart contract contains information like the relevant credit terms, borrower obligations, events of default along with the signatures or verifications from all other agents. RCN tokens facilitate interaction with the smart contracts among different agents within the RCN. Every credit flow starts when the Borrower makes a credit request. The Borrower performs the request from its Wallet Provider, which has already integrated into the RCN protocol. Post this, the Borrower waits for an approval before any further action can be performed.
Decentraland is an Ethereum-powered virtual reality platform. In this virtual world, you purchase plots of land that you can later traverse, build upon, and monetize. There’s no limit to what you can do. It’s the first digital platform that’s completely owned by its users. Similar to games like Skyrim and Fallout, Decentraland is an all-immersive virtual universe. However, instead of playing on a 2-dimensional screen, you participate in a 3-dimensional world. It seems to be the logical next step before creating full-blown AI-based games in the physical space à la Westworld. Similar groupings on LAND comprise Districts. Districts are basically communities that revolve around a shared theme. For example, there may be a District just for crypto enthusiasts with cryptocurrency apps and services. The Decentraland team is led by Ari Meilich (Project Lead) and Esteban Ordano (Tech Lead). Ordano previously worked at Bitpay as a software engineer and founded Smart Contract Solutions, Inc. Both founders have also worked together in creating Stremium and Bitcore. Decentraland has been around for longer than you may think. The team hit their first development milestone, Stone Age, in June 2015. This was a simple, pixelated grid that allocated pixels to users through a proof-of-work algorithm. Most recently, they held a Terraform Event in which they sold LAND in the new, 3D world. The team has also partnered with district0x, Aragon, and imToken to provide some of their services. MANA is the token used to buy lands in Decentraland. The Blockchain platform can be incorporated in order to buy or sell the various digital assets available in the virtual world. An unclaimed land would have the same market pricing on every exchange possible and precisely the developers are on a hunt for such since as they can build on top of it, and attract lot of popularity. However, one must keep in mind that the land parcels are different from them and each one of them varies according to the various market conditions of that time. Mana can be a great investment and can be bought by trading and with other Bitcoin, Ethereum, or any other prominent cryptocurrency and on some of the most notable cryptocurrency exchanges. Specifically, Binance and Huobi are two of the best cryptocurrency exchanges that one can suggest for trading Mana tokens. The Decentraland coin isn’t a minable cryptocurrency as it is issued on the Ethereum blockchain, unlike Bitcoin and other similar currencies. So users looking to engage in some Decentraland mining will be disappointed. Instead, it was sold during token sales and is now being traded on exchanges.