In a world where one’s existence is invariably tied to what a piece of paper says or doesn’t say about you. From money to academics, bills, and deeds, the claims on these papers determines access and availability to both the perks and necessities of life. But what happens when you don’t have these papers or possess the required ones? Welcome to the world of the unbanked.

They are defined by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as adults without access to formal financial institutions such as banks. These adults are unable to access credit facilities, make deposit and withdrawal, savings, credit history, and often have to resort to alternate and exploitative financial services like pawn shops and loan sharks. The exorbitant fees often accompanying these alternative services remains one of the key factors behind the vicious cycle of poverty miring the unbanked.

There are currently 2 billion such adults in the world.

The problem of the unbanked is one challenge that continues to be the focus of financial organisations — both public and private. Several solutions have been mooted including affordable, financial products for the democratisation of access and financial literacy. However, the impacts of these solutions have often fallen short of their lofty height due to one stumbling block — centralization.

The centralization of payment solutions has resulted in the creation of an isolated ecosystem that functions only as long as the user stays within its parameters. The instant they venture out, it’s back into the cold and precarious world of the unbanked.

However, it doesn’t have to be so.

Leveraging the blockchain’s decentralized and public ledger system, a financial ecosystem without borders or barriers can be created based on shared values. This simple and easy to use system is much cheaper to deploy (compared to the requirements and costs of setting up a brick and mortar structure) and its peer-to-peer ecosystem uses a distributed network of connected devices to store, record, and transact values without traditional intermediaries. The immutability and transparency of the blockchain ensure that information can be safely stored and verified at any place or moment in time, providing the perfect framework for building solutions for the unbanked.

However, once banked, what next?

The blockchain not only has the ability to bank the unbanked, but also possess the potentials to manage and grow wealth. Through the decentralisation of investment opportunities that the unbanked are traditionally unable to access, the blockchain is driving financial inclusion in a bold new way with Elements Estates’ real estate opportunities.

Elements Estates is bringing years of experience in the development and management of some of the most talked-about real estate deals in the SEE region to the blockchain. Deriving its unique portfolio from banks’ distressed assets, the platform enables anybody to purchase, rent and execute real estate-related services from anywhere in the world. Users holding the platform’s native ELES tokens will be able to benefit from the hidden value of distressed assets, acquired at well below market value from banks eager to clean up the Non-Performing Loans on their books.

Elements Estates combines three unique elements for an inclusive and profitable ecosystem. They are:

The safety and stability of the real estate sector,

The high-profit potential of distressed real estate deals and,

The transparency of the Blockchain.

What’s more, Elements Estates will be releasing a physical payment card in the future, enabling token holders to physical spend their cryptocurrency at any Point-of-Sale terminal or merchant services. Every user on the platform will be able to track all properties and follow development of assets on the platform. They will also be provided with regular valuations, reports and other relevant documentation to be assured complete transparency.

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