Who said money was heartless?
By: Impak Finance
Tags: Startup, Social Innovation, Bitcoin, Blockchain, Impact Investing

Back when I was a young boy, Monopoly was one of my favourite games. I liked to play the game with my sisters, not so much to win, but for the joy of planning and building a system that generated wealth. I could play all night. I wanted the fun to continue. In fact, I’d become so disappointed when one of my sisters ran out of money that I’d try to find a way for her to keep on going by giving her either money or properties.

When my older brother played with us, though, it was a different game. The faster he could push us to bankruptcy the better. That was how he played and as he said, he always played according to the rules. Through these nights spent playing with my siblings, I realized that people could approach Monopoly with very different goals in mind.

In real life, in my career, I also learned that money meant different things to different people. For those of us who are entrepreneurs, money is a mean by which we can build and realize our vision. For others, it represents security and for some, power.

But let’s not forget that the instruments we use to exchange money themselves have no tangible value. Whether they are shells, metal coins, or pieces of paper with images, the value that people place on them has nothing to do with their physical value. Money derives its value through trust. The trust in it being a medium of exchange, a unit of measurement and a storehouse for wealth. Money allows people to trade goods and services indirectly, understand the price of goods and gives us a way to save our wealth for future purchases.

Today though, looking at the facts, we must admit that the current economic system isn’t working for the vast majority of people on the planet. Awareness of system failure is now widespread and growing.

Today, we live in an economic system based on the false idea that money is wealth.

In 2016, half of the world’s wealth belonged to 62 people. Fewer and fewer people have more and more power and society pays the price.

¡Viva la Blockchain revolución!

Despite these economic challenges, we live in an exciting and interesting age.

If you thought that the advent of internet in the 90s was a major transformation of our world, wait and see how the Blockchain will revolutionize our society!

Blockchain technology is ultimately a means for individuals to coordinate common activities, to interact directly with one another, and to govern themselves in a more secure and decentralized manner.

In blockchain technology, the interactions and exchanges between users are tracked and registered without intermediary by using crypto currencies called “coins” or “tokens”. The first and most famous coin being the Bitcoin invented in 2009.

This means that users of a service can qualify both as contributors and beneficiaries of the platforms to which they contribute. And the value produced within these platforms can be more equally redistributed among those who have contributed to the value creation.

Primavera de Filippi, research fellow at Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, writes:

Blockchain technology makes it possible to replace the model of top-down hierarchical organizations with a system of distributed, bottom-up cooperation. This shift could change the way wealth is distributed in the first place, enabling people to cooperate toward the creation of a common good, while ensuring that everyone will be duly compensated for their efforts and contributions. If we, as a society, really value the concept of a true sharing economy, where the individuals doing the work are fairly rewarded for their efforts, it behooves us all to engage and experiment with this emergent technology, to explore the new opportunities it provides and deploy large, successful, community-driven applications.

Launching the impak Coin

At impak Finance, we are proud to be part of this transformative movement by launching impak Coin, the first cryptocurrency designed to support the growth of the impact economy — a fast-growing segment of the economy where organizations and individuals share the belief that economic activity should consider more than just its financial aspects, but also take into account the effect it has on people and the planet.

impak Coin, by design, will build loyalty, reward collaboration and encourage you (its holders) to buy from accredited impact merchants who are part of impak.eco, the social network dedicated to the impact economy.

We believe that money does matter. But where it’s used matters most of all.

Together, let’s build the impact economy. Join us at impak.eco, be part of the global movement and participate in the crowd sale of impak Coin.

Thank-you!

Paul Allard,

Chief Ecosystem Officer