As cryptocurrency and blockchain technology continue to revolutionize the world around us, we are often presented with a new case study in the benefits of the technology. One prime example is the story of a sexual assault survivor using the payment processor Seeds to anonymously crowdfund cryptocurrency.
In September of this year, a woman used Seeds to successfully raise $500 worth of cryptocurrency to support her while she took time off work to process the traumatic assault.
Seeds is a crypto-powered payment processor startup that aims to “grow your business, increase customer satisfaction, and help those in need around the world”. The company allows app developers to integrate donations and contributions directly into their apps.
The way it works: When an app user wants to make an in-app purchase at one of Seeds’ partner apps, the payment is turned into a microloan for an entrepreneur (or a sexual assault victim) in need. Seed claims to increase in-app purchases by up to 60% and states that their users spend four times what a typical buyer spends.
Using Seeds, anyone with a Seeds ethereum-based token can make a request for help and be matched with a microloan from a one of the partner apps. In this case, the survivor received a Seeds token from Seeds founder Rachel Cook so she could post a “Request for Help” to 30 different apps.
This call for help was met with support from various app users who helped the woman raise the necessary funds in just three weeks. Using Seeds the woman was able to crowdfund financial support without having to provide a government identification card or bank account – a requirement for many sites such as Kickstarter or GoFundMe.
“Survivors have trouble giving themselves permission to ask for money,” Cook told CoinDesk. “The next logical extension I saw in that [#metoo] was we need to talk about how this economic [crypto] system can meet this need.”
