I’m here to chat about Request Network (REQ), a financial ecosystem built on the Ethereum blockchain. They’re currently best known in the mainstream media for their Payment DApp, which is often described as a better, more secure, decentralized (no third party) PayPal or Venmo. Peel back the layers, and Request Network is so much more.

The Many Uses of Request Network

The Request Network encompasses both a Protocol and several decentralized applications or DApps (payments, crowdfunding, and accounting). For my crypto newbies, a blockchain protocol allows for technology to be built on top of it, so think of it as a base layer (want a deeper dive? My colleague Adam recently wrote about it here). This is a huge competitive advantage for Request Network because that means they have a blank canvas to continuously build and innovate.

Having the ability to send, receive, and pay invoices on the blockchain is a total game changer for businesses worldwide. For accounting to work, invoicing needs to happen, which the blockchain does not have built in at its core today. This is an essential component of how a decentralized economy works, and it’s awesome to see Request Network leading the charge.

Beyond sending and receiving payments, raising funds, and accounting and auditing services, Request Network is developing a framework for the Internet of Things (IoT) — another hot buzzword these days!

Request Network and IoT

IoT is the concept of all devices and electronics that can connect on/off to the internet. They’re taking this one step further and defining how this technology will automatically negotiate and define payment terms between each other.

I hope this article has demonstrated you of the incredible breadth and uses of the Request Network. With that being said, I was still super stoked to try out the payment request feature so I could get paid in cryptocurrency!

What better opportunity to try out Request Beta than to invoice my colleague for after work beers? I created this request on the desktop version. The request consists of three components: (1) my ETH address, (2) the Payer’s ETH address, (3) the requested amount which can be in ETH, KNC, REQ, DGX, DAI or OMG and (4) the reason (this is optional).

I hit “Create a Request” and BAM…

Screenshot of the request

I was expecting my colleague to get a notification once the request hit the blockchain. After 10 minutes and some digging, I figured out that I had to copy the URL and share it. I would love to see this automated in the future with a notification feature for the Payer.

Invoice URL for sharing

Nonetheless, the transaction was fairly seamless! Again, I did not receive a notification of when the payment was processed, which was a bit of a bummer. I stepped away from my computer for about 45 minutes and when I returned, I saw the request had been completed. You can view the completed invoice here.

This shows the above Request screenshot has been completed

Overall, I feel really great about the Beta version. I received my beer refund securely with ETH and with no third party!

Great News…REQ is now traded on Ethex!

REQ is now on Ethex. BOOM!

Chyeah! You read that right. Ethex, the DEX for useful tokens I work with, now lists REQ. I’m excited to see the evolution of Request Network and look forward to testing out future versions of the DApp.