Today I want to introduce to you a new ERC20 token, that may have an actually really useful purpose both socially and economically: AidCoin.
What is AidCoin
AidCoin is a project launched and backed by CharityStars (an organization that helps celebrities to raise funds for causes they care about , more info here: www.charitystars.com). The aim of this cryptocurrency based on the Ethereum blockchain is to develop a system for people that want to donate money to non-profit organizations that allows them to fully understand where their money are actually going, and how they are used.
Trust Issues in the Humanitarian Sector
Many times in the past, we have seen that even those organizations considered to be 100% charity focused lack the transparency and efficiency necessary to gain the trust of those who decide to altruistically deprive themselves of part of their hard earned wages for a cause they consider important (if you'd like more information on this topic, there is a very useful website, www.charitynavigator.org, that can give you an idea of how much of the donations actually go to charitable causes and how transparent the activities of different non-profit organizations are).
As a result, almost half of the population currently does not trust charitable organizations and this prevents them from both taking meaningful action and/or donating their economic resources to causes they may believe in. Trust issues are a major problem for the humanitarian sector.
As someone who has always been interested in working in non-profit and non-governmental organizations in the foreseeable future (I am still finishing my Master's studies), I can tell you that I witnessed how many of those groups pretending to be bringing a positive social impact relying on fundraising and private donations, often dedicate a major part of their resources into collecting as much money as they can, instead of trying to actually use the money they have already received for socially relevant projects.
In other words, those organizations become fundraising machines that use the money they raised to fund even more fundraising events. It is almost like they feel they have a rush to use the money in any way possible and advocate for charitable causes in the developed world, instead of trying to bring the richness they collect to the advantage of citizens in developing countries or troubled conditions.
Why AidCoin can be a Revolution
Here is where a technology like that proposed by AidCoin becomes not only useful, but even necessary to regain trust in the non-profit and charitable sector. With the implementation of the blockchain mechanism organizations and contributors can benefit of lower transaction costs. Also, contributions can be monitored and are transparent to everyone: transactions cannot be erased or hid on the blockchain, and every AidCoin is traceable in its path from the contributor hands until its final destination.
In addition, the implementation of the smart contract technology allows investors to be guaranteed by third parties that certain standards and rules for their target organizations are fulfilled. If standards are not met, donations will automatically be sent back to their initial owners.
In conclusion, I hope that this simple post will push someone to look into the potential of this project, and maybe invest in it. The ICO is launching on the 16th of January on the Bitcoin Suisse platform, at the rate of 1000 AidCoin for 1 Ethereum (FIAT investments are accepted as well). You can visit their website (www.aidcoin.co) to have more information, there is a very clear whitepaper with more details on the mechanisms behind AidCoin and its potential uses.