In a world where censorship is growing and the right to privacy is being eroded, Web3 – the next World Wide Web – seems to some to be the solution that users of online platforms have been waiting for. Some pioneering Web3 products and solutions have shown that when users are in control, there are fewer incidents of data breaches or unauthorized use or transfer.
Decentralized Communication Finance (DCFI)
Building on this success, some Web3 startups are trying to create solutions that combine decentralized finance and decentralized communications. One such startup, Pravica Club – an Egypt-based Web3 organization – recently launched such a messaging platform.
According to the startup’s founder and CEO, Mohammad Abdu, Pravika Club – Web3’s messaging, self-governing, decentralized identity and blockchain-enabled chat app – gives users the opportunity to build their community in a secure space.
Abdu told Bitcoin.com News how Pravica Club’s perpetual messaging and crypto payment functions make the app competitive. In addition to sharing information on the messaging app, the co-founder gave his views on crypto regulations and the emergence of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a blockchain and crypto hub.
Below are Abdu’s written responses to the questions sent to him.
Bitcoin.com News (BCN): You recently launched a decentralized connection finance (dcfi) platform that you call Pravica Club. Can you explain what this “dcfi” is about and why such a platform is needed?
Muhammad Abdu (MA): Dcfi is a new buzzword in the crypto space that describes the nature of platforms that allow decentralized communication and decentralized finance to serve multiple users under one platform.
Pravika Club fully complies with this promise, we enable private, decentralized and secure messaging end-to-end encrypted with user-owned encryption keys. Our users are using their own Decentralized Identities (DIDs) to login to Pravika Club without needing any username/password, mobile number or email, for example your name. ETH or your name. BTC and so on.
We’re giving people in the Web3 era a chance to build their community in a secure place and monetize multiple channels like Valued Messages (VWM), where community members not only like posts, but also “value” the post with small crypto tokens to show appreciation to the person who posted it.
Also, community builders can earn bitcoins by promoting community members and followers who stake (not own) certain crypto tokens and redirect the rewards to the community owners.
BCN: According to your company’s recent blog post, the messaging platform comes with a feature called “perpetual messaging”. How does this feature differentiate or make your platform better than other centralized messaging platforms?
MA: We all know that using any messaging app like WhatsApp or Telegram, every message is stored on servers owned and controlled by the service provider. What if you want to save a conversation forever, even if you stop using the service? In the world of Web 2 there is no way, but in Web 3 and using smart contracts, people can take speech and put it in plain text on the chain, this part of the speech turns into one. Share a single transaction ID with anyone and keep it forever on the blockchain and verify it and show it as proof of conversation.
It is a message that can never be deleted or changed and is contained in an NFT. [non-fungible token] A format that owners will probably use someday.
So, for example, when Vitalik Buterin announces the success of the Ethereum merger and shares this with the community through the Pravika Club, the announcement announcing the success can be an eternal message, and perhaps 100 years from now it will be this message. It will have value and can be seen on the blockchain, not in the history books.
BCN: As you said in your recent statement, users of the Dcfi platform will be able to send crypto payments. Can you shed more light on this?
MA: As you are already verified with your crypto wallet, you will have the ability to directly interact with your crypto assets while chatting. This amazing feature allows our users to send and receive crypto assets while chatting, and we call this feature CASH_TAG. Leave the chat session, then ask the other party for their crypto address and go to your crypto wallet to complete the transaction, instead of this long process, you can easily do the job with just one click. Thanks for the web 3.
BCN: Your company is based in Egypt, where monetary authorities have recently reiterated their opposition to cryptocurrencies. Additionally, you have celebrities like Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris condemning cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. How will this affect the efforts of Egypt-based Pravica Club users to promote cryptocurrencies as a means of payment?
MA: This is a big question. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Pravica is a company registered in Egypt, UAE and USA, our mission is to solve big problem related to data privacy. Yes we are using the power of blockchain technology to solve these problems but we do not promote any cryptocurrency and we do not use tokens and we do not issue any tokens to be used in our devices and services.
Therefore, there is no problem that we are working according to the guidelines set by the Egyptian regulator. We urge our users to ensure that any service that directly deals with any crypto-assets complies with the applicable laws.
Pravica is a global product and is not assigned to any country or region, we take advantage of our presence in Egypt by hiring the best talent and using cost efficiency regarding the cost of the work, and we are very proud. It must be the only company from Egypt that started working in the blockchain space three years ago and is still operating despite all the challenges.
BCN: In your opinion, are there more Egyptians accepting cryptocurrencies today than four years ago (2018) when the central bank warned against using them?
MA: I haven’t verified the statistics at this point, but while following news about the industry, I read an article months ago that 2% of Egypt’s population owns crypto (over 2 million people). I don’t know if it’s a real number or not.
Personally, I believe that Egypt is no different from the rest of the world, and more and more people are starting to accept crypto, that’s one of the reasons why we built a fully web3 crypto native Pravika Club platform, because if [there are users] Those who are not into crypto today, tomorrow they will be.
BCN: While many regulators from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region have taken a more conservative approach towards cryptocurrencies and blockchain in general, those from the United Arab Emirates have largely embraced the technology. As a result, the UAE has emerged as a hub for crypto and blockchain startups in the MENA region. In your opinion, what does the creation of the UAE’s cryptocurrency and blockchain hub say about the country’s regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies?
MA: I believe this is the best way to embrace and use this great technology. The UAE is running strong towards technology adoption and this is what encouraged us at Pravica to register with DMCC, a crypto hub in the UAE.
The United Arab Emirates is a pioneer and adopter of blockchain technology in the region. Important regulations that govern the way people interact with crypto and virtual assets.
Ultimately, crypto is here to stay and the faster you can adopt it as a country, the more profit you will make. We at Pravika will continue to expand our offerings and geographic reach and are currently looking to raise $5 million in seed funding.
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