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The following is a guest post from Betsabe Botaitis, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Hedera.

In the blockchain space, “DeFi” has traditionally referred to decentralized finance, where peer-to-peer systems replace intermediaries like banks. But a deeper, and more meaningful, vision is emerging: Decentralized Financial Inclusion. This shift focuses on creating financial systems that ensure equal access and opportunities for everyone—especially underserved communities.

This mission is personal to me. Growing up in Mexico, I saw firsthand how economic struggles can limit access to financial opportunities. My parents’ challenges shaped my belief that no one, regardless of their origin or socioeconomic status, should be excluded from the financial system. That belief is the foundation of my work in advocating for inclusive finance through blockchain.

These five pillars—financial literacy, asset building, capacity building, job creation, and neighborhood revitalization—provide a roadmap for building a more inclusive financial ecosystem.

Financial literacy is the first step toward inclusion. Over 1.4 billion adults worldwide remain unbanked, often due to limited access to financial services, opportunities, or knowledge. Financial literacy empowers individuals to understand savings, credit, and investment strategies. As well, recent research from University of Cincinnati shows a positive correlation between cryptocurrency literacy and broader financial literacy. Those with a higher understanding of digital assets are more likely to make informed financial decisions and seek professional guidance to complement their knowledge. 

As cryptocurrencies become more integrated into investor portfolios, this suggests that enhancing crypto literacy could improve overall financial decision-making and services for underserved populations.

For many unbanked individuals, wealth-building opportunities are often out of reach, with limited access to traditional investment vehicles like real estate or stocks. Blockchain, and more specifically the process of tokenization, creates new pathways for asset ownership by enabling fractional investments in valuable assets. Platforms like RedSwan CRE leverage tokenized real estate to offer fractional ownership of commercial properties, allowing individuals to invest in high-value assets at a fraction of the cost. This opens up opportunities for those who otherwise couldn’t afford large upfront investments. 

By lowering barriers to entry, improving liquidity, and ensuring transparency, blockchain facilitates greater access to diversified portfolios, offering financial security and a buffer against economic instability.

3. Capacity Building: Strengthening Institutions  

Financial inclusion isn’t just about individuals—it’s about equipping institutions to better serve them. Capacity building ensures banks, nonprofits, and community organizations can meet the needs of underserved communities. Blockchain-based smart contracts streamline resource allocation, improving efficiency and transparency.

For instance, the World Food Programme has used blockchain to distribute aid directly, cutting out intermediaries and reducing fraud. Similarly, local organizations can use blockchain-based tools to deploy resources more effectively, ensuring impactful support reaches those who need it most.

4. Job Creation: Unlocking Economic Opportunities  

Creating economic opportunities is at the heart of financial inclusion. By fostering environments that support small businesses and encourage entrepreneurship, we can drive job creation and community growth. These financial inclusion strategies should prioritize empowering local businesses through solutions like microfinance and crowdfunding platforms. Blockchain takes this a step further, offering secure and transparent systems for transactions, smart contracts, and resource allocation—helping ensure fair and accessible funding for all.

In tandem, the Web3 space has broadened opportunities within the global job market, particularly for developers, where talent remains highly sought after. With demand for blockchain experts and developers surging across industries, the decentralized and open-source nature of Web3 has opened doors to global job prospects.

This enables skilled professionals from underserved regions to contribute to innovative projects regardless of their location, further expanding access to economic opportunities that might have been previously out of reach.

5. Neighborhood Revitalization: The Promise of Tokenization 

Transforming underserved communities starts with access—access to financial services, essential resources, and opportunities for growth. By improving infrastructure, providing vital services, and creating inviting public spaces, we can uplift neighborhoods and improve quality of life for residents.

Financial inclusion is key to making this vision a reality. Through innovative solutions like DeFi and tokenization, communities can access microloans, savings accounts, and payment services with greater ease and transparency. Tokenized microloans, for instance, can unlock increased liquidity, providing faster and more accessible credit to fund projects like small businesses, housing improvements, or local initiatives.

This isn’t just about economic theory; it’s about empowering people to invest in their communities and their futures. While these solutions are aspirational, they offer a tangible path toward creating thriving neighborhoods where opportunity isn’t limited by geography or background.

The promise of DeFi is not just to disintermediate financial systems but to create systems that are transparent, equitable, and accessible to all. With economic inequality on the rise, the new vision for DeFi offers much needed hope for inclusivity and empowerment.

The responsibility lies with policymakers, developers, and industry leaders to champion decentralized technologies that advance financial inclusion. Whether through tokenized assets, microloans, or decentralized education platforms, the tools to build a more inclusive financial ecosystem are already here. 

In short, we need to prioritize empowerment over profit and access over exclusivity. Decentralized Financial Inclusion not only unlocks access to financial opportunities but also provides individuals with the autonomy to shape their own futures. This is bigger than just a technological shift—it’s a call to action for a more equitable world.

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