Stepping into the DeFi field! Can eToro's "GoodDollar" create a universal basic income, is it feasible?

The globally renowned brokerage platform eToro announced today its partnership with GoodDollar, an experimental project dedicated to universal basic income (UBI). GoodDollar has introduced a non-speculative stablecoin called "GoodDollar Coins (G$)" and deployed a global distribution mechanism for UBI through smart contracts.

GoodDollar Coins G$

eToro indirectly becomes a financial giant involved in the DeFi field. According to the official whitepaper of GoodDollar, G$ was initially backed by the stablecoin DAI in a 1:1 ratio to the U.S. dollar. However, over time and with the growth of interest rates and reserves, it will eventually be supported by a basket of cryptocurrencies, and the minted G$ will have a certain leverage, similar to Facebook's Libra token.

The mechanism of GoodDollar mainly revolves around claimants and supporters, where claimants are the recipients of the UBI distribution, and supporters are users who contribute funds. GoodDollar generates income through DeFi protocols like Compound and returns most of the earnings to supporters, with the remaining funds distributed to claimants.

The claiming process is quite fast, allowing quick login via Google or Facebook accounts. The only verifications needed are through a mobile phone and periodic short videos recorded by the phone or camera. Once the CLAIM button is pressed, users can receive their G$.

After claiming, users must wait approximately nine hours before claiming again.

eToro Founder's Vision

eToro founder Yoni Assia conceived a similar idea in 2018, aiming to build a solution to global wealth inequality. Introduced at the 2018 Web Summit, GoodDollar, a project invested in by eToro, was finally realized this year after two years of development. Yoni Assia stated

We believe that we can create a cryptocurrency aimed at reducing wealth inequality and providing universal basic income, this is just the long first step and will be an ambitious journey.

The concept of universal basic income (UBI) dates back to the 16th century, proposed by Thomas More, the author of "Utopia," a British humanist and social philosopher. The Netherlands conducted a two-year UBI social experiment as early as 2018.

Furthermore, with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic this year, the UBI concept has gained more attention and become a driving force. Spain announced plans to promote universal basic income this year. Previously, former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have publicly endorsed universal basic income.

As of the time of writing, 451 users have claimed 8,200 G$ today, including users from South America, the United States, Ukraine, Italy, and Argentina.