MoneyStreem - Idea For A Remittance/Money Sending App on the Steem Blockhain
Introduction
Hi guys sorry for posting more than once today but sometimes I get an idea in my head and I just have to get it out. This is another Ideasfactory idea/post (read about the concept here).
The basic idea is to forward the concept and utility of Steem (and hence Steemit) covertly by means of creating a mobile remittance app using SBD on the Steem Blockchain. I have given the idea a provisional name of "MoneyStreem".
Background To The Idea And The SBD Debate
Recently we have had a lot of talk about whether the SBD is necessary, the pros and cons etc. and I have been doing a lot of thinking on the matter.
Whilst most people agree that there are some potential problems with the SBD in terms of increasing volatility a lot of people such as @beanz and @smooth have countered that the potential benefits may well dwarf these and I am starting to come round to this point of view.
Further some of the risks could also be countered by reducing or even zeroing the interest rate as suggested by @tombstone.
With this in mind I have been thinking about another way we could use SBD to our advantage and further give Steem an easy way to get into the global consciousness.
Coinscrum Video On "Currency Wars" - With Andreas Antonopoulos
Yesterday I was watching a video on YouTube by Andreas Antonopoulos from a couple of weeks ago. I would highly recommend watching it if you have time over the holidays (I will also embed it at the end of the post):
He makes a lot of great points in the video but the things I have been thinking about already and were brought up in the video too are:
- The huge size of the foreign remittance market estimated to be $436 Billion in 2014 for developing countries alone.
- The fact that financial crises and instability are causing people to turn to cryptocurrencies.
- People in countries like India are having to pay a premium for Bitcoin.
- People all over the world are running into problems moving their money around - this creates a problem for economies but it also creates an opportunity to pay for any new infrastructure that solves the problem.
- People are willing to go to great lengths (as well as paying a lot) to have control over their money.
- There are still problems with Bitcoin in terms of scaling, high transaction fees and problems with buying.
How Steem Can Help
Although I don't have an easy solution for the problem of initially buying cryptocurrency, SBD/Steem can overcome some of these problems:
- SBD/Steem can be earned directly through curation and posting on Steem, giving a means beyond using a fiat gateway or mining in the conventional sense to access it.
- There are no transaction fees which is very useful for foreign remittance payments.
- Scaling is much less of an issue than with BTC and is constantly being worked on.
- Transactions are near instant.
- SBD removes the volatility risk which exists with other cryptos like bitcoin - that is particularly pronounced if you buy at the peak.
The Idea - MoneyStreem - Remittance On The Steem blockchain
- I propose making a mobile app "MoneyStreem" that let's you send money to any other person in the world with the same kind of ease that you can stream a YouTube video.
- Downloading and installing the app creates a new wallet for you on the Steem blockchain which you can use to send money to anyone else anywhere in the world who also has the app.
- The app could either be sold for a small fee to offset costs or it could have a free and paid version (with extra features e.g. Blocktrades integration or direct purchasing of SBD).
- The app would only do one thing - transfer money and would be promoted solely for this purpose.
- A section of the app could be used for advertising Steemit and explaining about Steem but it would not be anything too overt.
Why Not Just Use Steemit Or Esteem for this?
- There is something to be said for simplicity.
- It is easier to brand and explain and allows people to covertly be introduced to Steem.
- There is no need to explain anything about posting etc or blockchain.
Problems
The main problem is how to get money into SBD on the app in the first place?
This is the big problem with almost all cryptocurrencies and I'm hoping that someone in the community has some suggestions on this. In the UK (and EU) there is a service called Bittylicious that allows credit card and direct bank purchases of cryptocurrencies.
I have used it many times to buy Bitcoins and it only takes a few minutes. They do not currently support Steem/SBD but they are open to new currencies if there is a market. I think partnering up with businesses like this might provide a solution to this issue.
This problem is also a geographic one. In some places like the UK it is not hard to purchase cryptocurrencies - I can do it using my mobile phone via services like the one I described before.
This could a least act as a source of getting remittances going until new methods of conversion become available .
Another alternative could be to point people towards Steemit as a means of making money and or funding their accounts.
They could post, curate or sell services (in the style of Fiver) to raise SBD to fill their acccount. Another alternative would be selling items on Peerhub.
What Do You Think of This Idea?
I know there are problems with this idea but I personally feel it is worth exploring.
I don't think an app of this sort would be too expensive to develop and I for one would be willing to contribute funds to help. I'm sure I'm not the only one. Please let me know what you think.
Thank you for reading.
If you like my work please follow me and check out my blog - @thecryptofiend
Follow me on Gab.ai or on Twitter
All uncredited photos are taken from my personal Thinkstock Photography account. More information can be provided on request.
Are you new to Steemit and Looking for Answers? - Try https://www.steemithelp.net.
I see the remittance idea pop up quite often. When I first joined the world of Crypto Currencies that was the use case that excited me the most.
It's a huge untapped market if someone can get it right! Merry Christmas:)
I think it's a good idea, but why not just use an existing wallet? Honestly, the last thing I want is another app or place to log in. It's a lot of info to continue accumulating. I'd rather get more centralized in my management of crypto.
Perhaps if one of the current wallets received more requests to support Steem & SBD, we'd get our solution from someone who already has a great platform. Jaxx is nice, and they've hinted that Steem may be on the table for the future. Blockpay/Bitshares already supports Steem, and you can trade in their OpenLedger platform. I'd just like to see existing tools supporting Steem, personally.
This is not for people who are already using Steemit or Steem in some way.
The idea is for it to be a money remittance alternative to using Bitcoin where you don't have to pay transaction fees and there is not premium that you have to pay in places like India.
Plus you don't have the volatility issues that BTC gives you.
Someone who just wants to transfer money would might not normally consider something like Steem Dollars.
If you are already using Steemit you don't need it. Merry Christmas:)
The BlockPay/BitShares wallet supports SBD. Would that work?
Is it mobile? What I'm thinking is make it as simple and feature free as possible to avoid confusion. Having too many currencies or options may confuse people that is why I was thinking a standalone app. That way you market it for a basic purpose and make it easy for non crypto people to understand the concept. What do you think?
Was pondering this afresh.
I like the idea of Steem, because of the instantaneous nature of it. You don't have to wait for the verifications. But it would be awesome if this could be done without a web connection, like a true cash.
Having said that, I expect that we'll see www actually worldwide within the next few years. For now, almost half the world's population can't access it from where they live. It would seem that these are the ones that might benefit most from this?
Interesting article about this
Cool. Thanks for sharing. I think technology will eventually make it so that we have web access everywhere.
Yeah, I like it. Kind of like Square Cash for transferring $$, but without dependence on banks.
The others will work fine, but use any crypto you want, so might lead to confusion. Though the versatility would be nice. Promoting Steem is nice too, making a stand-alone more attractive. I suppose it depends on the market and context. And a simple P2P application that isn't web dependent would be even better, for transactions when a signal isn't available. Not sure Bitshares can do that.
I think you would still need a web connection - although there may be some way to get around it that I'm not aware of.
Another powerful post, great ideas to juggle with and be reminded of and, of course, an encouraging word in relation to the inner potency of Steem! Thank you so vey much, have a wonderful Christmas and namaste :)
Thanks you too:)
This post has been ranked within the top 10 most undervalued posts in the second half of Dec 25. We estimate that this post is undervalued by $24.93 as compared to a scenario in which every voter had an equal say.
See the full rankings and details in The Daily Tribune: Dec 25 - Part II. You can also read about some of our methodology, data analysis and technical details in our initial post.
If you are the author and would prefer not to receive these comments, simply reply "Stop" to this comment.
Thank you:)
Check out Changelly.com allows you to buy Steem/SBD I believe for Credit Card and BTC. Also, great idea let me know how I can help! thx.
edit: Also, to solve this issue there could be a dedicated post for people to fund SBD dollars toward this issue.
Yes I heard of them before I think. That could be a potential partner to work with on something like this.
Definitely I would support it:)
I am new so maybe this is common knowledge. But would this allow easier P2P transfers on this site if it doesn't already exist? I've been wanting to run contests with prizes on here but don't know if the site has the means to do so. I'd imagine this would simplify things.
Well for people who are already on the site it is really easy to do this without an app like this. You can easily transfer money to other people using the wallet so you should be able to do competitions without any problems. Feel free to DM in the chat if you need any help.
I think it's a good idea. I can see an app using SBD instead of Fiat. The problem is converting it back to Dollars or loading it. It works for people earning from Steemit. But the goal seems to be to get new people in.
So there needs to be a way to convert fiat to SBD quickly and easily and if possible with little to no cost for it to take off and all behind the scenes rather the hoops we now have to jump through like exchanges etc...
Then when people are using it you let them know they can earn SBD on Steemit. They come fro free or low cost transfers and which is a gateway to using Steemit.
Yes the ideal thing would be if we could get a service like Bittylicious (in the UK) which can do the conversions to provide it. The problem is that there is no single company that does it internationally due to the variety of laws and AML legislation. Given how Bitcoin is exploding right now it is only a matter of time before someone comes up with a solution to that issue.
Interesting post sir @thecryptofiend very good point of view, I like the idea. Thanks for sharing this valuable post.
Thank you very much for visiting, commenting and supporting my work
You're welcome:)
This is really great. I hope this app is also available in the Philippines
Well so far it is just an idea - I hope someone uses the idea. If I had the coding skills I would do it myself.
His point about brain wallets is priceless. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching. Yes it is brilliant. Learning a string of words is actually pretty easy and when you have a big incentive like making money it makes it even easier! Andreas is such a good speaker and teacher!