Giving Compass' Take:

• Angela Rastegar shares the potential of cryptocurrencies to be used for good, and what infrastructure is needed to make it possible. 

• How can philanthropy help to build the infrastructure that is necessary for cryptocurrencies to be used for good? 

• Learn more about the risks and opportunities of blockchain for philanthropy. 

1. Send aid without corruption:

Coins could be sent to, and immediately used by, people in crisis situations. Corruption (by governments, on-the-ground providers, and even nonprofits) prevents large amounts of aid from reaching end recipients. Crypto could ensure those in the most volatile situations get resources directly, by circumventing the need to send aid dollars to intermediaries and tracking receipt.

Additional infrastructure would need to be developed by on the ground organizations, but such programs have already been launched by some aid organizations.

2. Economic identity and banking:

Crypto could be used to provide a financial identity to the 40% of adults who are unbanked, most of whom live in developing economies. These 2 billion adults cite barriers such as fees, distance to banks, lack of unnecessary documentation, and (most commonly) not having enough assets to warrant an account.

3. Saving money (in unstable environments):

For many people in emerging economies, long-term savings are challenging due to high inflation, government corruption, and the risks of assets being seized if money is stored in local financial institutions. Cryptocurrency provides a way to avoid local institutions.

Read the full article about cryptocurrency for good by Angela Rastegar at Medium.