Genesis Story

Tae Oh founded Gluwa in 2016 to pursue its core mission of building secure and efficient blockchain-based solutions to real-world problems. Even before his work at incubator ‘500 Startups,’ he realized that due to technological constraints, emerging markets were on the cusp of explosive growth — if they only had more reliable access to basic financial infrastructure.

Given the massive population of nearly 1.4 billion financially excluded individuals worldwide due to the constraints of existing infrastructure, it had heretofore proven difficult for them to secure loans, build credit histories, and achieve economic prosperity.

Something had to be done to reconcile the situation.

Building Creditcoin

Following Tae’s conviction, Gluwa successfully launched Creditcoin in 2019, a blockchain network dedicated to creating a secure, yet transparent credit infrastructure for real world financial institutions to publish on and reference. The protocol established a public ledger for recording loan performance, thus facilitating a shared record of publicly verifiable credit histories. By partnering with fintech lenders in local markets, such as Aella in Nigeria, Creditcoin provides a secure and decentralized environment for users to build their credit scores and access liquidity on more favorable terms.

Affecting the Real World

As Creditcoin’s technology penetrates deeper into emerging markets, it naturally answers the question in many crypto enthusiasts’ minds: what is the use case of blockchain technology?

While the loudest narratives such as memecoins may take the spotlight at times, Creditcoin is proof that there are real problems being solved. Its impact is best illustrated through the stories of real users whose lives have been transformed by opportunities derived from the Creditcoin protocol.

David, the Aspiring Farmer

Take the story of David for instance, a young Nigerian farmer. David aspired to expand his small farming operations but lacked the capital up front to make the necessary investments. Through Aella, a financial institution partnered with Creditcoin, David received a loan to buy a cow.

This initial loan was recorded on the Creditcoin network, creating a verifiable credit history for David as repayments were made on time. As his farm prospered and generated more revenue, David was able to secure additional loans to buy more cows and further scale his operations, including hiring additional employees to help with the increased workload.

Adesola, the Resilient Engineer

Another compelling story is that of Adesola, a Maintenance Engineer in the State of Lagos. During the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic, many were laid off or forced to stay at home without income. Adesola found himself in a difficult situation, but was able to turn to Aella for support. Unlike other lenders who stopped issuing loans or offered increasingly hostile terms, Aella provided Adesola with the liquidity he needed, and offered flexible repayment terms because of the on-chain credit reputation he had built using Creditcoin.

“You know during that time I borrowed money, and they were very understanding and gave us grace. There are some loan apps that made things really difficult for people because they were afraid people would not pay back since people did not have work. But Aella did not do that; they were coming to the rescue of people and giving them enough time to make their payment back, which I really appreciated.”

-ADESOLA SHERIFF

This support allowed Adesola to move to a new home and replace damaged belongings, including purchasing a new TV, which he still uses today. His positive experience highlights the power of building an on-chain credit identity, encourages financial lenders to better understand human situations and to provide a more supportive approach. Situations like these are made possible through their partnership with Creditcoin.

Ola, the Future Resident of Toronto

Dosunmu Segun Olakunle (Ola) is a dedicated builder-contractor, specifically a bricklayer. Work can often be inconsistent, and tends to require long-distance travel, often requiring extended periods of time away from his wife and children. Despite these challenges, Ola remains committed to providing for his family. Thanks to his on-chain credit reputation with Creditcoin and Aella, Ola could access financial instruments that allowed him to visit his family more often, ensuring he could maintain a strong connection with his loved ones.

Ola’s dream is to one day move to Canada and establish his own business called “Ola of Toronto.” His story highlights the profound impact that accessible credit can have on a person’s life, turning aspirations into reality and fostering hope for a brighter future.

Expanding Our Real-World Impact

Gluwa and Creditcoin have demonstrated the practicality of leveraging blockchain-based solutions to real world problems. This journey has been nothing short of a success, already having recorded over 5 million credit transactions, and servicing hundreds of thousands of customers in high-growth markets.

Earlier this year, we were proud to announce one of our most notable achievements to date: Gluwa’s strategic partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to drive the development and adoption of Nigeria’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the eNaira. This technology partnership promotes financial inclusion across the country, and advances our mission to provision better access to financial services for unbanked or underbanked individuals.

Additionally, we are in discussions with the leaders of other African countries such as the President of Liberia, VP of Nigeria, VP of Ghana, and the VP of Sierra Leone to establish similar partnerships, expanding our reach and impact amongst nimble, forward-thinking economies. These potential collaborations represent an exciting opportunity to replicate our success in Nigeria and bring financial empowerment to even more individuals.

Scaling To Serve Billions

As a result of our lofty ambitions, we must focus, yet scale up in order to achieve our core missions with two major initiatives:

Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC): In collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria, Gluwa is working on integrating the eNaira with Credal, the API powering the Creditcoin network. This integration will harness blockchain technology to boost adoption, enhance financial inclusion, improve eNaira functionality, and foster innovative implementations.
EVM-Compatiblity Upgrade: We are upgrading our network to be EVM-compatible to prepare for growing demand, as well as invite innovation from dApp developers and projects outside of our organization. This is the first step towards ultimately transforming Creditcoin to become a Universal Smart Contract layer, enabling the seamless launch of native multichain dApps and revealing novel avenues for innovation.

Join Our Mission!

Looking ahead, our vision for Gluwa and Creditcoin is ambitious and far-reaching. We aim to expand our partnerships with financial institutions and governments across emerging markets, continuing our mission to provide accessible and transparent financial services to everyone who needs them.

About Creditcoin

Creditcoin is the world’s leading real-world asset infrastructure chain for financial institutions, connecting global borrowers, lenders and investors on-chain. To date, the protocol has helped its partners record over 4.27 million real-world credit transactions, valued at $79.7 million USD, while servicing 337,000 customers worldwide across emerging markets.

By transparently securing credit history and loan performance on the Creditcoin network, the protocol has already helped thousands of borrowers, businesses, and investors secure capital financing, build credit history, and grow their global RWA investment footprint.