Nexo--Helping the Cash Strapped Through Overdrafts

nicholas83 (56)in #cryprocurrency • 6 years ago (edited)

My journey into cryptos started while domiciled in Japan. Like many others, I was trying to find a way to exit my humdrum 9 to 5 life. It was during this time that a friend of mine introduced me to cryptocurrencies. I dove in and within a few weeks, I amassed a little fortune of two BTCs and a set of other coins, namely NEO, Ethereum, Populous, and several others. Initially, things were good, especially seeing that I tripled my profits within just three months. But the celebration was not to last. My younger sister was diagnosed with an eye condition called keratoconous. Surgery was the solution. As the primary breadwinner for my family, the onus was on me to assist with paying for the surgery.

At the peak of the crypto surge, I sold all of my NEO, which I bought at about USD 40.00 a piece, for USD 170.00 each. I used the proceeds to assist with her surgery. While I was happy to do this, I cannot but bemoan the fact that in the long run, I will never know how much I could have really gained. I assume that this question will be answered when the next bear market arrives.

Fortunately, this is a trauma I will not have to experience again now that Nexo, the latest blockchain inspired technology, has arrived.

Video Summary

But what is Nexo one may ask? And why should I care, much less be happy about it?

Nexo has the distinction of offering the world’s first and only instant crypto overdrafts; meaning that people like me, who are owners of cryptocurrencies, will have no need to sell their digital assets in order to procure cash. This is because Nexo’s business model gives borrowers the ability to use their digital assets as collateral to gain fiat currency. And it gets better because Nexo eliminates the need for credit checks, which for someone, like me, who have defaulted student loans, a godsend.

But it does not stop there, as the incentives for utilizing the Nexo ecosystem gets even better. How so? Many of us who are operating in the crypto space are what’s referred to as minnows. For us, paying high taxes, exchange fees, and other hidden costs is quite impactful. Fortunately, Nexo has eliminated these things, which is more than I can say for this present credit based fiat system which is in the business of inflating pretty much everything so as to squeeze all it can out of the already burdened customer.

Add that to the fact that many opportunities often pass us small players by because we want to hold on to our digital assets for long periods. As such, that annual vacation is placed on the back burner because we are so fiercely protective of the little we have. Thanks to Nexo, I and other crypto holders, will be able to keep our possessions and benefit from the surges and bear markets that have become synonymous with the world of cryptocurrencies.

And while I am inclined to look at this product through the lenses of an investor. The opportunities afforded by Nexo is not only available to people who are so inclined. Their services are available to virtually everyone; from hedge fund managers, to ICO and crypto companies, to crypto miners, to cryptocurrency exchanges, and even gamers and virtual reality users. In short, as long as you have cryptos, you can take advantage of Nexo’s product offering.

A fast and simple process?

The old adage of “if it’s too good to be true then it usually is;” might be the first thing that crosses one’s mind after doing research on Nexo. After all, it seems so simple and straightforward. Plus the aforementioned incentives seem fantastic, especially when measured against competitors like SALT and ETHLend. However, after combing through Nexo’s literature one finds that this is a very simple but effective process.

So, how exactly does it work?

The ecosystem is equipped with an overdraft wallet, into which the customer simply deposit’s his/her cryptocurrency and voila, the “the overdraft funds are immediately available via bank transfer or the Nexo Credit Card.” The Nexo Credit Card, I should add, is offered by the company. There is no need to worry about getting bogged down with the arcane language and procedures of the blockchain to use the card. Nexo’s credit card works just like any conventional one, except that you can only spend the amount that is available in your Nexo wallet. Of course, an adjustment in the value of the crypto will determine how much one has available to spend. “This means that user can access the instant overdraft function Nexo offers directly via the credit card.

And what of Repayment?

This can be done in a number of ways. There is the traditional method of bank transfer where one can utilize the fiat currency option, and of course, if one so desire’s, s/he can pay using cryptocurrency. On the matter of cryptos, the Nexo token, which is the currency of the ecosystem is a means by which users of the overdraft facility can utilize the repayment method. And there is the added benefit of “receiving discounted rates on the interest fee.” And if the customer is not satisfied with this, s/he “can pay the balance with a portion of the cryptocurrency holdings they have stored in their Nexo wallet.”

Use case

I started this piece by relating how I, through necessity, parted company with over USD 3,000 worth of NEO coins. Unfortunately for me, Nexo was not around a few months ago when my sister was stricken with that malady. Now, it is here, so I will turn the introductory story on its head and convey what the post-Nexo @nicholas83 did when faced with such a dilemma.

He started investing in cryptos in the middle of 2017. For a while he was riding the bear market and saw his fortunes rise. In a short time, he amassed a nice little fortune of three BTCs, a few dozen NEOs, and several other coins. He was working overseas when he received a call from home that his sister has been diagnosed with an eye disease. As the family’s primary breadwinner, he has to come up with the money to pay for his sister’s treatment.

The problem is that he is still riding the bear market and do not want to sell his coins. Plus, he was always leaning towards long-term investment. He was giving himself two to three years before cashing out. What to do? He conveyed this to a fellow crypto investor who told him about Nexo. He looked into the product. Liked what it offered and went ahead and signed up. He deposited his NEO coins in his Nexo overdraft wallet. Instantly, he was able to procure a loan of USD 3,000 which he wired to his sister who was able to do her surgery.

Of course, @nicholas83 had to repay this loan. Regarding the three aforementioned options, he opted for the paying with fiat, which he did and his coins were released back to him with no hidden fees or things of the sort that mainstream institutions often use to fleece their customers.

Building on the Credissimo Brand

Nexo is no fly by night project by a bunch of amateurs. They already have a tried and tested product as it relates to their flagship company Credissimo. It is going into its 11th year of operation and has processed over 1,000,000 loans. In addition to that the company successfully listed 2.5 million shares on the public markets. That was several years ago, and since then they have undertaken a BTC and Chatbox integration initiative. Hence, this is not their first engagement with digital assets. Let that sink in. Let the fact also that it has received awards from Forbes and Ernst&Young sink in.

Also, take note of the fact that it is already one of Europe’s largest alternative financing entities, which stepped in 11 years ago to offer credit on favorable terms to people who were having problems procuring loans within the traditional mainstream financial world. @nicholas83 was able to transact business in this smooth straightforward way because of the competence of the group which has years of expertise in this field. They are merely bringing a stellar product to the blockchain. Saying this, it would be remiss of me not to mention that the team boasts of expertise in banking, politics, blockchain technology, communication and a host of other areas. Running the full gamut makes it safe to assume that the same success from Credissimo will be replicated on the blockchain with Nexo.

The Team

Safe and Secure

The cautious investor should also note that “Nexo has filed with the US SEC to ensure they are compliant with all regulations.” Again, this is a serious project. As the co-founder said in his presentation; he is not one to trust people with his money easily. The same can be said about many others, especially those of us who have been burned by unsavory characters in the past.

This is why Nexo Oracle needs to be mentioned. As “the core technology behind Nexo. It takes blockchain technology to another level. This automated system is what is responsible for providing the overdrafts, and it is what Nexo uses to deal with repayments.” Given the choice between smart contracts and human error is a no-brainer. Oracle is driven by smart contracts and hence, the customer is assured that s/he will benefit from transparency and efficiency.

Token Sale

Having written on several projects in this space, I cannot recall the last time a token has been oversubscribed, however, this is the case with Nexo. In fact, according to their website, it is oversubscribed by a factor of 5x “and the applications for the public pre-sale whitelist indicated an 11x over-subscription.” This is beyond amazing but not surprising, combing through their whitepaper, one quickly learns that Nexo is one of those projects that gives one pause to think and ask a simple question: why did no one think of this before? Especially for me who lost all that NEO.

Conclusion

And so, what started out as a way to offer loans to millions of otherwise unqualified people across Europe, has morphed into a worldwide initiative; and not a moment too soon. Like with any nascent industry, the crypto world has its fair share of problems. As mentioned above, not being able to take advantage of the potential of cryptos is among the most pressing problems. Nexo, knows that too much digital assets are tied up, and people do not know how to spend and maximize the potential of their coins and tokens. Thankfully, they have emerged to loose one of the chains that have bound up much of the USD 5 trillion dollars worth of digital assets.

That said, I am kind of bummed that I am not on the whitelist. I will keep trying nonetheless. Fingers crossed.