According to rough estimates, the earliest forms of banking surged around 6,000 years ago in Asia. Since then, traditional banks have substantially evolved from their original form and helped millions of humans over the years. However, never in its millennial history has the traditional banking system felt so threatened.
Faced with the disruptive technology of cryptocurrencies and blockchain, the traditional banking industry is now forced to adapt or be left behind. Not only is decentralized finance (DeFi) rapidly gaining ground against the traditional financial sector, but we are also now witnessing the first full crypto banks becoming a reality thanks to approval from the federal US government.
The limitations of the traditional banking system are becoming more and more apparent. Although DeFi still needs to mature as an industry, projects like Clever DeFi are already able to offer financial services which are superior in almost all facets.
Flaws of Traditional Banking
Perhaps to better understand the solution presented by Clever DeFi it would be helpful to analyze the flaws of the current banking system.
The first, and most obvious one, is the problem of centralization. Whenever a banking or financial institution provides a service, the individual who receives it needs to trust that entity. In decentralized systems, however, the need for trust is taken out of the equation and individuals can have true ownership and control over their wealth.
Another issue related to centralization is corruption. With so many scandals, too many to count at this stage, the banking system has acquired a notorious reputation. An insurmountable amount of taxpayers’ money has gone to rescue banks and other financial institutions over the years. Bailouts have, unfortunately, become standard practice and industry experts are looking at bail-ins as the next big solution for future banking collapses.
Finally, another drawback of traditional banking is its inability to compete with DeFi. This becomes especially evident when we compare the rates of traditional savings account, an average of 2% a year, with the rates being offered by the yield farming protocols. Clever DeFi, for example, is currently offering a rate of more than 300% a year with no incremental risk compared to a regular savings account.
Solution: Clever DeFi
Aimed at solving several of the shortcomings of banking, Clever DeFi is a community-owned project and the world’s first fully autonomous compound interest protocol. Clever acts as an autonomous savings bank, where users automatically receive interest based on the amount of CLVA tokens on their wallet balance.
Using Clever, investors can guarantee true ownership of their wealth. The CLVA tokens are kept secure on the Ethereum network, where no wallet can be accessed without the appropriate private keys.
Every 14 days, CLVA token owners receive additional tokens as interest, which can go all the way up to 11%. The best part of the Clever protocol is that the payouts are hardcoded into smart contracts, ensuring users will automatically receive interest as long as they have tokens on their wallets.
Unlike the majority of other liquidity mining protocols, Clever does not require users to stake their tokens and have them locked for a certain period of time. Another upside over its competitors is that there are no fees. Although it uses the Ethereum blockchain, Clever is able to circumvent the prohibitively high gas fees by using its own unique distribution system.
With an open protocol, accessible to anyone with a device and internet connection, Clever can easily reach a large portion of the unbanked population and offer them access to savings. Helping bring financial inclusion to the world, Clever is able to solve many of the issues plaguing traditional banking while offering savings at a vastly more attractive rate.