How does one invest in the age of digitalised currency?
Sowmay and Samyak Jain know that investment is a privileged position. Internet and electricity are not universally available things. Either in India, or the world.
However, the presence of internet has had a significant impact on the nature of economic transactions.
Like most fintech developers, the two Jain brothers are betting on the successful proliferation of digital exchange. This faith on the internet is warranted. They have gathered most of their knowledge and skill from the internet.
Sowmay and Samyak had dropped out of their educational pursuits to run Instadapp.
Developed during a Bengaluru hackathon arranged by ETHIndia, Instadapp acts as a bridge between centralized cash economy, and the decentralised finance (DeFi) possibilities provided by the digital economy.
An innovative and popular product, it has allowed the Jain brothers to be featured in Forbes India’s list of 30 under 30.
Instadapp’s Model
ETHIndia is an event organized by Etherium, a blockchain based software platform with their own crypto currency named ether. Instadapp also received a development grant from Kyber Network, a crypto trading hub based out of Singapore. And the interest of the brothers also lay in the emerging block chain based economy.
So Instadapp developed with a crypto focus. It became a software platform that translated transaction happening in the cash economy, regulated under a controlled economy, with the purchase of block chain based decentralised currency based on the interactions of individuals in the digital space.
This connection is a viable niche which has been targeted by many fintech developers and investors. Instadapp acts as a platform for many such developers to create and fine tune their own algorithmic protocols in the trading space.
The brothers clarify that although the current model of Instadapp is free, they intend to include a revenue system to be levied on transactions, as a mode of earning money, and validating their myriad investors.
Impact
Working out of Delaware USA, and Hyderabad India, Sowmay and Samyak were overwhelmed by the investor interest in their product. Pantera Capital led their initial round of funding, which capped off at about $2.4 million. Currently the bulk of assets managed and saved through Instadapp lies north of $4 billion dollars.
The trust and popularity that the app received from clients all across the globe was also a pleasant surprise.
In the Indian context, they bemoan the excess of regulation and taxation levied on block chain based transactions. But they hold out hope for a time of freedom in this space, citing an indelible fascination inherent in the crypto space.
They seem to have earned their place in the Forbes 30 under 30 list, and plan to work hard to justify their position on the list.
