CryptoClear Digital Funds

In the 1990's, we had the "digital divide" when people in poor regions and developing countries lacked the internet infrastructure to benefit from a digital age. It took 20yrs for smart phones to finally reach the remote mountains and seas.  

Now a new digital divide has merged - when 15% of the US adults are trading cryptos and 90% of digital asset transactions are within the developed world, underprivileged communities and developing countries got left behind again in the digital transformation of money and wealth.   

Blockchain enables fast and permissionless payment transactions in distributed global networks.  It is instrumental to help bring down barriers to financial inclusion.  However, complex encryption algorithm and lack of trust and transparency create barriers for the underprivileged community to access to this new form of digital money.

Our crypto rating platform analyzes cryptos using cutting-edge technologies such as network topology, AI/ML, and formal verification. We then use this research insight to create digital asset funds on the blockchain.  Unlike traditional investment vehicles, people do not need much paperwork nor money to sign up and start trading and investing for as little as a dollar. We improve transparency through in-depth analysis of blockchains and accessibility via decentralized transaction networks. In addition, we are a global community bringing blockchain knowledge and products to every corner of the world. We enable a DAO network to support independent and unbiased assessment of cryptos by anyone willing and able to work without borders.

We serve anyone who have internet access to use our portal to trade and invest in digital assets.  There is no country boundary nor limitations based on demographic background. We are launching in Mexico, Singapore, and Dubai first to help immigrants and gig workers with cross-border remittance transaction needs.  We will then expand in LatAm, MENA and Southeast Asia region broadly. 

We are a multidisciplinary team from MIT with both investing expertise and technology talents. We have two female founders.  The team is all minorities and almost all 1st gen immigrants. Our team collectively are native speakers of four languages.  We are from India, China, and Mexico originally.  We know from hour international origins how difficult the existing financial system can be for immigrants, gig workers, and people living in countries with tough capital controls.  We know from our firsthand experience how difficult it is to accumulate wealth when the per capita income is less than $3 a day.  We have strong ties to the underprivileged communities who are facing the most challenges in financial inclusion.  Because of our connections globally, we can tap into our network to interview NGO and community leaders to get a pulse of the needs of the communities.  We also conduct online surveys to schematically collect broad inputs to guide our product design and implementation. 

Anne has managed $20B+ multi-asset portfolios and credit investments at Fidelity Investments.  Her investment career spans for 15yrs including time with JP Morgan and Munich Re. She led cross-functional teams developing investment analytics.  Anne has been attending the World Bank annual conference every year and knows many people in civil society.  

Jason is an undergraduate at MIT, double majoring in computer science and applied math with a 5.0/5.0 GPA.  He has published research on fast matrix multiplication at MIT CS & AI Lab.  Jason is a Platinum Division contestant in the USA Computing Olympiad.  

Manjula is a technology expert and authored 14 patents in network topology, machine learning, and cybersecurity.  She has led data science and engineering teams at Cisco for 10yrs and previously worked at Bank of America.   

Both Anne and Manjula are in the Executive MBA program of MIT Sloan School of Management.  

One teammate (non-founder) was a co-founder of Mexico’s largest online auto loan lender.  Another teammate has published research on blockchain economics, which was quoted by WSJ and several news outlets.  

We are guided by several renowned advisors:

• Dr. Eric Rosengren, former Governor of Boston Federal Reserve and Visiting Professor at MIT Golub Center for Finance and Policies.
• Dr. Charles Senatore, Board Member of Fidelity Digital Assets, former Global Head of Compliance at Bank of America, former SEC regional director.
• Prof. Roberto Rigobon, MIT Sloan applied economics professor, winner of Institutional Investor Allocator’s Choice award.
• Prof. Huamin Qu, HKUST computer science department chair, IEEE VIS co-chair.
• Prof. Julian Shun, Associate Professor in EECS, MIT. Principal Investigator in parallel computing and graph analysis at CSAIL.
• Dr. Leo Fan, Faculty at Rutgers University.  Cofounder of Cysic. Former cryptography researcher at Algorand.

A few hundred people.

First of all, we are looking for social outreach support through SOLVE’s network to reach more communities, who could be users of our products globally.  We measure our impact by communities involved and active users who can benefit from our service directly.  It is a global platform. The more people who are using our service or aware of it, the more impactful we can be.  We are looking for distribution partners to help spread the words and get to as many growth markets as possible.  With this network, we will be able to validate our product to reach MVP and scale faster in a global network.     

Second, we are looking for a support network of advisors who are global civil society leaders and like-minded social impact entrepreneurs. By sharing the development experience with this network of high impact creative thinker, we can validate our business model quickly and advance the solution frontier for societal problems in a global scale.  In the past, our team had the honor to participate in the Legatum Center for Entrepreneurship and Development and MassChallenge Fintech accelerators.  We benefited a lot by being part of the excellent mentors and cohort of innovative entrepreneurs, gaining perspectives of different background and understanding of the uniqueness of each country and region of the world.  There are so many cultural, legal, and regulatory issues that we can gain insight from through SOLVE.  

Lastly, we are open to fresh ideas and opportunities to integrate into local value chains beyond our imagination.  We believe in the collective creativity of a diverse group of entrepreneurs from all over the world. 

Our blockchain analytical insight engine is powered by a scientific causality data driven model developed through iterations.  With the data models, we can monitor and analyze blockchains in real time to identify safe assets to invest in and filter out problematic ones to avoid.  They substantially improve the risk-reward profile of the digital asset funds.  By creating funds on blockchain, we make investment products available globally instantly across national borders and cut down the cost by 80% compared to traditional funds.  Users from low-income communities can invest as little as $1 or less.  

Our blockchain analytics is a substantial improvement over the static data aggregation exercise most providers are using.  

●       Network Topology Analysis - to map out the nodes in the flow of transactions on a blockchain network.  This allows us to identify clusters of related addresses, trace the movement of funds between them, and assess overall network centrality.

●       Data Handling and Address Labeling - CryptoClear data lakehouse is created sourcing public ledgers from Google Cloud and existing sources.  We layer the data with labeled addresses that are associated with known entities or insiders, and intents associations like exchanges (Coinbase, Binance, Uniswap, and etc), dark net, AML, and rogue transactions (ransomware groups) to identify suspicious activity such as funds flowing from insider-controlled accounts or known criminal/rogue address to other accounts of interest.

●       Behavioral Causality Analysis with Machine Learning - Identify anomalies and score ranking inclusive of behaviors of blockchain users. Consider a user starts sudden traffic of large amounts of transactions or when funds are being moved in unusual patterns.

●       Scalability and Sustainability - Considering the blockchain data ledger is essentially a continuously growing list of record (blocks) linked together using cryptographic techniques to form a chain, approx. 1 MB every hour. This is factored into our solutions to support the scalability and sustainability of the product through deltaDiff pattern path modeling.

●       Risk Scoring - This comprehends unique integral rating functionality that delivers quantitative and qualitative inputs and assigns a risk score to each crypto on the blockchain network ecosystem. It is based on the eight rating aspects such as governance, decentralization, protocol utility, and community strength.

●       Data Visualization and Analytics Search: The novel techniques present the findings in an easy-to-understand and actionable way. This is an indexed and stored part of CryptoClear data lakehouse. This allows the institutions/investigators to quickly act by identifying and searching the crypto and related action of interest, empowering them to make informed data-driven business decisions. 

Next Year Goals:

• Increase Access to Investment Products: CryptoClear can aim to increase access to investment products for underserved communities and individuals. This would be the rollout of our service in selective regions starting from Mexico City and Dubai.
• Develop Educational Resources: CryptoClear can develop educational resources to help users better understand the benefits and risks of investing in digital assets funds. This could include creating webinars, blog posts, and other content that provides information on investment strategies, market trends, and risk management.
• Partner with Community Organizations: CryptoClear can partner with community organizations that serve underserved communities and offer financial education or other support services. This could help CryptoClear reach a wider audience and increase awareness of our platform among those who might benefit from it the most. 

Next Five Years Goals:

• Expand Geographical Reach: CryptoClear can aim to expand its geographical reach to include more countries and regions in LatAm, Southeast Asia, and MENA. This could involve working with local regulators and partners to ensure compliance with local laws and regulations and adapting our platform to local market conditions.
• Increase Participation of Underserved Communities: CryptoClear can aim to increase participation of underserved communities in investment opportunities through our platform. This could involve developing targeted marketing campaigns and offering incentives for first-time crypto users.
• Foster Financial Inclusion: CryptoClear can aim to foster financial inclusion by providing affordable and accessible investment opportunities for everyone. This could involve developing products and services that cater to specific needs and preferences of underserved communities, such as low-income families, new immigrants, women entrepreneurs, or small businesses.

To achieve these goals, CryptoClear can adopt a variety of strategies, including technology innovation, strategic partnerships, marketing and outreach campaigns, and community engagement programs. By focusing on financial inclusion social impact goals, CryptoClear can not only grow our business but also contribute to the broader goal of creating a more inclusive and equitable financial system.

As a fintech startup, we can measure our progress towards our impact goals, as outlined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as Decent Work and Economic Growth and Reduced Inequalities. The measurable metrics to track progress towards our impact goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Blockchain on-chain transactions are more transparent than in traditional finance.  We can therefore calculate and monitor a granular set of metrics in real time. 

We have set targets and benchmarks for each goal. We will track progress and evaluate the effectiveness of our strategies over time.

• For economic growth, we can track the average or median savings per account achieved through our products.
• For reduction in inequality, we will collect GINI coefficients statistics in the communities that we serve.  It can also be useful to track the incoming transfers of an average or median account over time.
• To measure reduction in poverty, we can track the number of people who have accessed our products or services and the percentage of them who have experienced an improvement in their financial situation when the starting balance is near poverty line.

We will regularly review and report our progress towards our impact goals to stakeholders and on our web site by dashboards, reports, and other tools.  We will adjust strategies as needed based on the progress made towards our impact goal.  This may involve revising targets, changing tactics, or developing new products or services that better align with our impact goals.

Blockchain-based digital asset funds can potentially have a significant impact on financial inclusion in several ways:

• Democratizing Access: By enabling anyone to invest in digital assets funds through a blockchain-based platform, the technology can help democratize access to investment products, which were previously available only to a select few. This can increase financial inclusion and provide a pathway for underserved communities to build wealth and participate in the global economy.
• Cost-effective: Traditional investment products, such as mutual funds, require large initial investments and charge high fees, which can be prohibitive for many people. In contrast, blockchain-based digital asset funds have lower fees and can be purchased with smaller amounts, making them more accessible to people with limited financial resources.
• Transparency: Blockchain-based platforms offer increased transparency, enabling investors to see exactly where their money is going and how it is being used. This can increase trust in the investment process and lead to more participation from individuals who were previously hesitant to invest due to a lack of transparency.

Based on these potential impacts, a theory of change or logical framework for a blockchain-based digital asset funds fintech solution could be as follows:

Activities:

• Develop a blockchain-based digital asset funds platform that enables anyone to invest in a diversified range of funds.
• Develop educational resources and marketing campaigns to increase awareness and understanding of digital asset funds and their benefits.

Outputs:

• Increased number of users in digital asset funds, particularly among underserved communities and individuals.
• Increased transparency and trust in the investment process, leading to greater participation from hesitant community members.

Outcomes:

• Increased financial inclusion and wealth creation for underserved communities and individuals.
• Increased democratization of access to investment products, reducing financial inequality.

To support the existence and strength of these links, our fintech startup could conduct third-party research, process or impact evaluations, or interviews with our target population to gather data on the effectiveness of our platform in achieving the desired outcomes. This data can be used to refine the theory of change and improve our fintech solution's impact over time.

Creating digital asset funds using blockchain technology is our unique approach towards financial inclusion. This help to substantially reduce the barrier to entry for low-income community and make transactions affordable and available across borders.  Existing investment products in traditional finance are way more costly and exclusive than what we are building.   

Our advanced blockchain data analytics is the backbone the digital asset funds.  Without such analytics, we would not be able to determine the safe assets and eliminate risky assets from the fund.  A unique feature of our blockchain analytics methodology is to apply network topology to detect unusual transaction patterns on blockchains and highlight risks arising from centralization, poor governance, and market manipulation.  We view all the transactions occurring on a blockchain as a network.  For a given time window, we create a directed graph of all transactions within that window and conduct centrality, flow, and other analysis on the graph, to detect unusual patterns and conduct rating assessment.

• We have a very diverse team to start with.  Because all our teammates are minorities and 2/3 of our team are female, we appreciate the culture of diversity. We are from four continents and collectively speak four languages.  This is essential to help bring new ideas, insights, and solutions to the table from a multicultural perspective.
• We provide policy guidance to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. This may include anti-discrimination policies, equal opportunity hiring practices, and diversity training programs.
• We believe that building an inclusive company culture is critical to promoting diversity and equity. This can involve creating an environment where everyone feels valued, respected, and included. We can do this by fostering open communication, encouraging feedback, and creating opportunities for employee engagement.
• Engaging with diverse communities to understand their needs and develop products and services that meet their needs is in our DNAs. This will involve partnering with community organizations, conducting surveys or focus groups, and participating in events that bring together diverse groups.
• We review product offerings for biases.  It's essential to review product offerings for bias to ensure they are equitable and accessible to all users. We analyze their data and user feedback to identify any potential biases and make necessary changes to their products and services. Since our products are based on a set of data models, we also should use explainable AI algorithms to check the potential biases in the models. 

Incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion into our operations requires ongoing commitment and effort. By adopting these strategies, fintech startups can promote a more inclusive and equitable environment and create products and services that meet the needs of diverse communities.

Our business is primarily composed of a B2B SaaS subscription service and a B2C digital asset investment fund product.    

The B2B SaaS subscription service is for crypto investment funds to use our blockchain analytics and crypto ratings as research insight and risk management tools.  This part of the business helps improve governance and market transparency in blockchain.  This B2B business will be launched first to fund our development of advanced blockchain analytics. 

The B2C digital asset investment fund product enables equitable access to investment products for everyone, everywhere, any time.  Built on our blockchain data analytics engine, the B2C component will further develop a smart contract on blockchain to realize the investment fund vehicle.  It is where we could have the most social impact.  

Expanding on our network topology research, we plan to launch crypto entity counterparty risk management tool for users of centralized crypto exchanges (e.g. Coinbase and Gemini) and other blockchain entities (e.g. Uniswap) to assess safety and soundness of transaction networks of these entities, detect abnormal activities, and manage counterparty risk.  This product can be both B2B and B2C.  

We can take a step further to launch investment indices as alternative investment benchmarks to generate licensing revenue. The investment indices can be offered on financial information platforms such as Bloomberg for additional revenue opportunities and as distribution channels.

Our business will be first launched as a B2B SaaS subscription service for crypto investment funds to use our blockchain analytics and crypto ratings as research insight and risk management tools.  This side of our business offers recurring revenue and ~80% gross profit margin.  It can be quickly launched with a small team.  Like bond rating agencies, we charge an annual subscription fee around $10K-$80K/year for users to access our online platform of crypto asset ratings, receive trading alerts from our network topology analysis, and use the portfolio analyzer.  This business is highly scalable.  We can support thousands of additional users without having to spend more on IT.   

Once our blockchain analytics is built up, we will launch our blockchain-based digital asset funds as a B2C business.  The digital asset funds will leverage our blockchain analytics engine to automatically scan for suitable investment opportunities and mitigate risks. We will charge a monthly service fee as percent of assets invested in our funds, which is targeted to be a 0.06% flat fee per annum. The service fee will be programed into blockchain smart contracts and automatically collected by the algorithm.  Our fee is substantially lower than traditional mutual funds because blockchains are cost-effective for transactions and offer a global market without frictions.   We plan to launch this B2C digital asset fund service through collaboration with immigrant communities and gig workers communities first in Mexico and Dubai in the first year and then expand regionally and globally later.   

Our cost of business development is low.  So far, we have relied on the cofounder’s professional network in the financial services industry to secure key customer relationships.  We expect to be able to do so without hiring sales staff in the first year.  This substantially reduces the cost of our operation.  

To get to the global reach, we will need to raise VC funding from investors in the next three years to fund our growth in the B2B beachhead market and expand globally after MVP.

Since we started a year ago, we have raised $115K of equity-free funding through prizes, grants, and fellowship.  We received general financial support from Amazon AWS, Legatum Center for Entrepreneurship and Development, and MIT Sandbox Innovation Fund.    

We are running a pilot project with Fidelity Investments and have signed several letters of intent for the blockchain analytics and rating part of our business.  We expect to complete the pilot in summer 2023 and convert users into paying customers with $300K revenue by the end of the year.  Fidelity Investments is evaluating a strategic investment in us.