Category: Humaniq

Posted on

Humaniq

What is Humaniq?

Humaniq is a banking app based on the blockchain technology, and available for both iOS and Android users. It is designed with unique biometric and blockchain recognition features to facilitate opening and extending banking services to the entire globe especially the unbanked. The app is created and run on the Ethereum blockchain to provide key banking operations together with other third-party services including the following;

  • Peer2peer lending.
  • Data security.
  • Loans.
  • Personal financial management.

Humaniq was founded in 2016 by a computing and human rights professional, Alex Fork. The primary idea of the application is premised on the idea that helping people get out of poverty and grow their local economies. The project and platform received huge support including the recognition by the UN (United Nations) for the excellent work of reaching the unbanked.

To achieve its objective, Humaniq also released its native token referred to as HMQ into the markets.  It is an ERC20 token that was released into the market in May 2017. The price of HMQ between launch and August 2018 remained relatively stable within the range of $0.05 and $0.1.

However, the months of December 2017 and January 2018 saw the price surge to $0.61 (the highest mark in its history). The community is expecting the value to keep rising as more people and multinationals appreciate the good work of Humaniq and support it.

What is the problem that Humaniq Solves?

Poor access to banking services in many parts of the globe

According to the World Bank and United Nations, about two billion adults of working age in the world (slightly under 40% of all global adults) lack access to formal and regulated banking services. Interestingly, these members do not just hail from the poorest countries.  Lack of banking services affects virtually every country on the continent.

Financial exclusion is one of the primary causes of extreme poverty in most parts of the globe. A bank account is considered an important part of founding businesses, expanding transactions, enhancing efficiency, promoting transparency, and better management. World Bank reports also shows;

  • India is home to 21% of the world’s unbanked population while China holds 12%.
  • Women make up 55% of the unbanked population.
  • About 95% of the Sub Sahara African is unbanked.
  • More than 20 million the Middle East and North Africa adults are unbanked.
  • The population of unbanked grew by 10% between 2011 and 2014.

Limited reach and use of blockchain technology

Since the introduction of blockchain technology in 2009, the fast growth has largely been concentrated in the cities and large crypto markets. However, in most rural areas, developing countries, and emerging economies are yet to experience the blockchain and its features. This is the niche that Humaniq is reaching to try and give demonstrate the positive side of blockchain technology.

How does Humaniq Solve the problem?

Humaniq system is based on the blockchain technology with the main transactions being run on the Ethereum platform. The focus is to understand the unbanked population and to provide a system that can capture the right information, win and bank them. Here are the main components used to help Humaniq address the outlined problem.

The native token (HMQ) and Ethereum smart contracts

The Humaniq tokens are ERC-20 compliant coins that are emitted to every authenticated user. Part of the tokens was released in an ICO that closed in April 2017. Though it was faced with many hitches, it was very successful and raised $5 million. A total of 11,600 participated in the ICO and made an average investment of $430.

The remaining tokens are released to the target market using the Emission smart contract that executes the predefined reward threshold. Other components of the system are the Humaniq app, Humaniq servers, and the Ethereum blockchain.

BioID technology

BioID technology is being used by Humaniq to make personal identification and registration easy. Humaniq is working with expert companies in bio-identification to ensure that users who want to join the network can sign up by simply letting the application scan their facial features. The process involves the following steps.

  • The user is required to visit Google Play to download the Humaniq app and install it on his/her smartphone.
  • The registrant takes a photo of him/ herself using a smartphone and uploads it in the Humaniq application.
  • The registrant is also required to record a short video grinning, smiling, and pronouncing the texts shown on the screen.
  • Once the details are added, the user is required to add more information including passport, and SMS. Note that there is no risk of losing the password because your face is the password.

Note that the BioID automatically updates your details so that changes in your facial features are captured, and the system updated automatically. For example, Humaniq will sense the changes in the face over time so that you do not have to repeat the entire registration process.

The Humaniq wallet

The Humaniq mobile wallet is an interface for the mobile users that provides a direct interface for checking the balance and running transactions. Like other wallets, the Humaniq mobile wallet helps to generate private and public keys that are required when sending, receiving and managing funds.  A standard token contract keeps track of the token balances and facilitates easy transfer when running transactions.

What makes Humaniq better than its competitors?

In about ten years, the blockchain niche has grown exponentially. Since 2009 when Satoshi Nakamoto released Bitcoin, over 1700 cryptocurrencies have entered the market.

This has opened stiff competition as each cryptocurrency targets to win a bigger market share. Here are some of the top reasons that make Humaniq stand taller than its competitors.

  • Humaniq targets a highly underserved niche yet potential niche. This implies that the community and users are likely to grow over time. Remember that though the focus is the unbanked, even the other population is not restricted from using the technology and investing in the token. For example, some of the people who bought the HMQ tokens during the ICO wanted to show their support for the project and make an investment.
  • The project is implemented with a lot of openness. This helps to make more people identify with it and come out to support the noble course of taking financial services to the unbanked. For example, the management runs startup Humaniq contest for developers, marketers, economists, and entrepreneurs across the globe. The winners of the contests are funded by Humaniq to implement their ideas.
  • The Humaniq project creates real links that unbanked can use to grow to financial freedom. The connection is done by taking groups of people to successful startups and businesses for inspiration. For example, Kenya (one of the East African countries) has been an important learning point for its success story in reaching the unbanked through mobile applications.
  • While it is true that Humaniq has its business edge, the focus on helping the developing countries and poor populations has set it apart from the peers. This focus has made even the governments and international organizations appreciate the positive side of blockchain technology.
  • Though new, Humaniq was carefully designed to run on top of the Ethereum blockchain protocol to enjoy a higher level of security and efficiency. All transactions involving the native HMQ have to be verified by miners spread on the Ethereum blockchain. This helps to make the transactions decentralized, secure, and reliable.
  • The platform provides unique features that help to enhance value of the network and its users. For example, Humaniq has an encrypted chat system, a biometric authentication system, and a unique reward model for people who use the system.
  • The process of registering on the Humaniq platform is easy, direct and highly secure. Unlike many cryptocurrencies that require users to follow lengthy procedures when registering, Humaniq is very easy to join and start enjoying its services. The app captures the facial details of the user so that the entire registration is completed in a very short moment. Note that the system also uses the facial recognition when you need to sign into your account. This implies that there is no risk of ever losing your Humaniq password.

How can Humaniq be categorized?

Humaniq is a blockchain based banking system that is helping to extend the reach of banking services to the large unbanked community across the globe. The platform is also timely in extending the blockchain technology to new niches. The operation is expected to play a pivotal role in helping create new meaning in the blockchain sector.

  • The Humaniq platform is designed carefully to make joining easy and direct.
  • Users from the targeted niches with unique ideas are supported with funding.
  • The platform helps users to operate securely in the network without worrying about hacks, forgetting passwords, or getting their information stolen.

What’s Humaniq’s vision on Security?

Humaniq targets to safely deploy the blockchain technology to help the unbanked access financial services. The Humaniq founder and the development team understood that the focus on safety was very important if the project was to become successful. Because the unbanked was also likely to lack important computing skills, the focus on safety had to be taken a notch higher. Here are some of strategies used to guarantee users of optimal safety.

  • Verification of users is done through facial and voice recognition. This helps to eliminate the need for formal documentation.
  • The tokens are provided as a reward to users who complete various tasks on the network such as signing in and using the native coins. This is meant to keep the platform free from the expensive ASICs mining equipment, centralization of mining, and eliminate the risk of 51% attack.
  • The system’s chat system is encrypted to ensure that no middleman can tap the communication between nodes and become a threat. The chat system and the entire network are also updated regularly to identify gaps and seal them promptly.

Examples of Humaniq’s use cases / applications.

Humaniq is a unique blockchain based platform that targets to accomplish a noble course of reaching and banking the unbanked. As a “bank” the use cases mainly mirror what conventional banks do. However, all the services are offered in a decentralized manner. Here are some of these applications.

  • Sending and receiving value. Like a standard bank, users are allowed to send value to target recipients based on same Humaniq network. This is an important component in any financial services package because users are to send value both locally and abroad. Note that since HMQ is an ERC-20 token, some gas will have to be used when sending the coins on a peer2peer basis.
  • Extending businesses services to the unbanked. As the Humaniq platform extends the reach to more people in various areas across the globe, more players will be able to plug their businesses and offer their services to the community. These include lending, consulting and other business-related services. All the payments are effected in the native HMQ coin.
  • Financial management. When you get banking services, the notion of prudent management becomes very important. Because the transactions involving your account are recorded in a public ledger, you can easily follow them to manage your finances. Just log into your account to see all the payments, deposits and other transactions for review.
  • Trading the native tokens in the markets. Like other cryptocurrencies, you can trade the tokens in the markets such as UPbit, Bittrex, and Mercatox. Note that you will be required to register for a trading account and verify it with personal information such as passport number, date of birth and proof of location. This information can differ from one market to another.
  • Buying products and services. As more traders start embracing cryptocurrencies, it means that you can pay for products and services using digital tokens such as HQM. Note that even if a store only accepts other types of tokens, you can still buy by converting HQM to the accepted tokens.
  • Entrepreneurial support. On top of providing banking services, Humaniq platform has been helping users to link with similar enterprises to help sharpen their skills. From Ghana in West Africa to Tanzania in East Africa, investors are helped to identify the right projects and take them to the right audience. You can even get a financial grant for startup or grow your business.

https://coincheckup.com/coins/Humaniq

https://humaniq.com/

https://blog.humaniq.co/

https://humaniq.com/wiki/about-humaniq/faq

https://humaniq.com/pdf/humaniq_wp_english.pdf