The first Plastic Credit ReFi Protocol with USDM

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Andre Vanyi-Robin

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Entity (Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

7

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Develop a mechanism for regenerative finance projects with a use case for a Plastik's ReFi protocol, providing funding the recovery entities. 

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

NO

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

Yes

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

The whole project will be open source, the components will be:

 

• Policy Scripts to manage the liquidity pools and resources
• UI for users to connect and handle their payments and commissions
• Backend for the UI connecting to the blockchain

[METADATA] Horizons

DeFi

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

About Plastiks:

Plastic waste in the environment is a 350 million ton per year problem and downstream collection systems and recycling infrastructure needs to be improved and, in many countries, built out. 

Plastiks.io provides is a plastic waste recovery tracking platform that includes (currently the solution is built & working on the CELO blockchain):

·   Verifies the recovery and recycling of plastic from the environment.

·    Traces plastic waste from recovery to recycling.

· Converts the waste recovery data into PLASTIC CREDITs that ensure transparency.

· Offers companies and individuals the opportunity to sponsor plastic waste recovery.

Plastiks certifies Plastic Recovery Entities in 20 locations around the world (Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Greece, India, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, Spain, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Thailand), enabling them to issue PLASTIC CREDITs on the platform.

These entities recover and/or prevent plastic from reaching the environment. Once the plastic is recovered, they sell it to recyclers for its reintroduction in the industry or they use different solutions to give it a second life.

Mission and Objectives

Plastiks’ mission is to include plastic recovery in every economic transaction taking place during everyday life and business.

 For more info please refer to our website https://www.plastiks.io/

The focus of this proposal:

Currently, Plastiks is manually conducting the recovery entity payments in Plastiks tokens. Specifically, this proposal consists of building on CARDANO the Plastiks ReFi protocol to ensure survivability of the Plastic Credits. 

The Plastiks’ ReFi protocol provides Plastic Recovery Entities and Holders opportunities to ensure revenue and contribute to market stability.

The challenges faced by the Plastic Recovery Entities:

Plastic Recovery Entities, having sold their PLASTIC CREDITs and received payment in PLASTIK tokens, have found that the volatility of the crypto market affects their ability to secure funds in USD to execute their roadmaps.

The social and environmental impact that Plastic Recovery Entities aim to achieve through its roadmap is at risk. Challenges faced by the Token Holders:

Since the PLASTIK token is a utility token, not a security token, Token Holders are unable to determine whether the underlying economic activity related to the buying and selling of the PLASTIC CREDIT is increasing or decreasing, other than the token's price.

The Solution

Background:

Employ the CARDANO stable coin USDM as a store of value to combine the benefits of cryptocurrencies, including fast transactions and decentralization, with stability that mitigates the price volatility seen with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum.

How the solution should work:

Each time a PLASTIC CREDIT is sold on the Plastiks platform:

• Twenty percent (20%) is sent to Nozama Tech Ltd, owner of the Plastiks platform and technology.

• Eighty percent (80%) is sent to the Plastic Recovery Entity, issuer of the PLASTIC CREDIT.

The ReFi Protocol establishes a payment mechanism of 80% of the PLASTIC CREDIT sale value to the Recovery Entities. The steps to activate it are the following:

1. A transaction for PLASTIC CREDITs is made on the Plastiks platform.

2. A holder of CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) lends seventy-two percent (72%) of the sale value to the Smart Contract, expecting to earn interest.

3. A holder of the PLASTIK token lends seventy-eight percent (78%) of the sale value to the Smart Contract, expecting to position their tokens for a sale at a specific price and to earn an interest.

4. The Plastiks ReFi Smart Contract uses the lent CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) from holders to purchase two percent (2%) of PLASTIK tokens in the market.

In summary, the payment of eighty percent (80%) received by the Plastic Recovery Entity in PLASTIK Tokens at the moment of selling its Plastic Credit comprises:

• Seventy-eight percent (78%) from PLASTIK holders who lent their tokens.

• Two percent (2%) of PLASTIK Tokens purchased in the market with the lent CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM).

Eighty percent (80%) of the PLASTIC CREDIT sale value is transferred to the Plastiks ReFi Smart Contract, which converts the PLASTIK tokens into CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) and locks them for forty-five days (45).

Over a 45-day period, the Recovery Entities, after receiving PLASTIK tokens from the sale of their PLASTIC CREDITs, have the option to trade all their PLASTIK tokens and secure a guaranteed seventy percent (70%) in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM). Alternatively, they can sell their PLASTIK tokens on any of the exchanges where it is traded, such as Lbank, Bitmart, Coinstore, Uniswap, and Ubeswap.

This ensures the execution of the roadmap and the achievement of social and environmental goals, independent of the price and market conditions of the PLASTIK token.

SCENARIO 1

If the Plastic Recovery Entity returns the tokens before 45 days to the Smart Contract:

1. Eighty percent (80%) of the sale value in PLASTIK tokens is returned by the Recovery Entity to the Plastiks ReFi Smart Contract.

2. Seventy percent (70%) of the sale value is paid to the Recovery Entity in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) from the locked funds in the Smart Contract.

3. Seventy-two percent (72%) of the sale value in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) is returned to the CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) Holder from the locked funds in the Smart Contract

4. Half a percent (0.50%) of the sale value is paid in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) as an interest to the CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) Holder from the locked funds in the Smart Contract.

5. Seventy-eight percent (78%) of the sale value is returned to the PLASTIK Holder who lent their tokens to the Plastic Recovery Entity

6. Five percent (5%) of the sale value is paid in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) as an interest to the PLASTIK Holder from the locked funds in the Smart Contract

7. Half a percent (0.50%) of the sale value is sent in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) to Nozama Tech Ltd. as a license fee from the locked funds in the Smart Contract

8. Two percent (2%) of the sale value is used to purchase PLASTIK tokens on the market through tradeable exchanges (Lbank, Bitmart, Coinstore, Uniswap, and Ubeswap) using the locked CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) in the Smart Contract.

This additional market purchase of PLASTIK tokens complements the earlier two percent (2%) purchase, made when the eighty percent (80%) of the sale value in PLASTIK tokens is sent to the Smart Contract for conversion and locking in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM).

SCENARIO 2

If the Plastic Recovery Entity chooses not to return its PLASTIK tokens to the Smart Contract during the 45-day period, and instead sell them on the market through tradeable exchanges:

1. Eighty percent (80%) of the sale value in PLASTIK tokens is sold by the Plastic Recovery Entity on the market through tradeable exchanges (Lbank, Bitmart, Coinstore, Uniswap, and Ubeswap).

2. Seventy-two percent (72%) of the sale value in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) is returned to the cUSD Holder from the locked funds in the Smart Contract.

The CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) Holder earns an interest based on how much PLASTIK tokens the ReFi Smart Contract has from all the two percent (2%) of tokens when the Plastic Recovery Entities return the tokens.

3. The PLASTIK Holder has sold its tokens at the desired price and obtains seventy-eight percent (78%) of the sale value in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM).

WHO USES THE REFI PROTOCOL?

The Plastiks’ ReFi Protocol is to be used by Plastic Recovery Entities to guarantee their income from the sale of their PLASTIC CREDITs whilst ensuring the traceability and transparency of payment for the activity of plastic waste recovery.

Plastiks’ ReFi Protocol is to be used by holders of PLASTIK tokens to earn an interest and put their tokens for sale at specific prices.

BENEFITS OF THE REFI PROTOCOL

For Plastic Recovery Entities 

Guaranteeing seventy percent (70%) of the PLASTIC CREDIT's sale value over a period of forty-five days, regardless of crypto market conditions, thereby hedging their revenues against market volatility.

This ensures that the Plastic Recovery Entities can collect the necessary funds in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) to execute their roadmaps and to provide social and environmental impact.

For PLASTIK token holders 

The ability to earn interest in CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) without risking their token capital.

They can set their desired selling price for their tokens without impacting the market price. Their tokens are staked in the smart contract, ready to be paid out to the Plastic Recovery Entities at the Holder's chosen lending or selling price.

With the Smart Contract central to the payment process for Plastic Recovery Entities, Holders can monitor the underlying economic activity associated with the buying and selling of PLASTIC CREDIT. This access to transparent information enables them to make informed decisions about whether to hold or sell their tokens.

For the market and crypto traders

To have access to information, found on the Smart Contract, which shows the growth of the adoption rate of the PLASTIK token' through the amount of CARDANO STABLE COIN (USDM) locked in it.

The publicly available data on the adoption rate will offer insight into the overall footprint of the token, thereby revealing its true value.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

"The Plastiks ReFi Protocol will have a significant positive impact on the wider Cardano community in several key ways:

1. Expanding Real-World Asset (RWA) Use Cases: By bringing the rapidly growing plastic credit industry onto Cardano, we're pioneering a new vertical for RWAs on the blockchain. This will demonstrate Cardano's versatility and attract attention from other sustainability-focused industries.
2. Driving Adoption and Visibility: With high-profile partners like Barcelona Football Club and Danone already on board, Plastiks will bring substantial visibility to Cardano. This exposure to major brands and their vast customer bases will significantly increase awareness and adoption of Cardano technology.
3. Boosting On-Chain Activity: Each plastic credit transaction will generate multiple on-chain actions, including token transfers, smart contract interactions, and stablecoin conversions. 
4. Attracting Major Clients: In addition to our existing partnerships with Barcelona FC and Danone, we are in advanced discussions with several Fortune 500 companies in the consumer goods and retail sectors. These include a major global beverage company and an international fast-fashion retailer, both of which have expressed strong interest in integrating Plastiks' solution on Cardano to offset their plastic footprint.
5. Innovative DeFi Mechanisms: The ReFi protocol introduces novel DeFi concepts tailored for real-world impact, showcasing Cardano's capacity for financial innovation. This could inspire similar models in other sectors, expanding Cardano's DeFi ecosystem.
6. Enhancing Cardano's Environmental Credentials: By facilitating plastic waste recovery, this project aligns perfectly with Cardano's commitment to sustainability. It provides a tangible example of how Cardano can be used to address global environmental challenges.
7. Open-Source Contributions: As an open-source project, our protocol will provide valuable resources for developers in the Cardano community, potentially spurring further innovations and applications.
8. Attracting Institutional Interest: The involvement of corporate clients and the potential for institutional adoption of plastic credits will draw serious attention from traditional finance and ESG-focused investors to Cardano. We're already in talks with two major European investment banks interested in offering plastic credits as part of their ESG portfolios.
9. Cross-Chain Interoperability Showcase: As Plastiks transitions from other chains to Cardano, it will serve as a case study in cross-chain migration and interoperability, potentially attracting other projects to the Cardano ecosystem.
10. Economic Impact: By facilitating funding for plastic recovery entities, especially in emerging markets, this project demonstrates how Cardano can be used to create positive economic impact globally. We're currently working with recovery entities in 20 countries and aim to expand to 50 countries within two years of launching on Cardano.
11. Technical Advancements: The implementation of our ReFi protocol will push the boundaries of smart contract capabilities on Cardano, potentially leading to technical improvements that benefit the entire ecosystem. For instance, our work on efficient multi-party transactions could be applicable to other complex DeFi protocols.
12. Community Growth: As more users engage with the Plastiks ecosystem on Cardano, we anticipate a growth in the Cardano community. Based on our current user base and growth projections, we expect to bring at least 100,000 new users to the Cardano ecosystem within the first year, many of whom will be interacting with blockchain for the first time.

Through these multifaceted impacts, the Plastiks ReFi Protocol will not only grow its own user base but will also significantly contribute to the expansion, innovation, and real-world utility of the Cardano ecosystem as a whole. Our project represents a unique intersection of sustainability, corporate responsibility, and blockchain technology, positioning Cardano at the forefront of these crucial global trends."

To show the results we will develop a dashboard to see the activity of the protocol where everybody can see what is going on.

*How much plastic has been recovered

*How much plastic has been recovered

*How much money there is lent in the pool

*Who is next on the list to lend money

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

We do the development in-house and everything existing on the Plastiks ecosystem has been built by us. We want to bring the whole ecosystem into Cardano, including new customers that will bring more users.

To date, Plastiks has developed and deployed a fully operational plastic credit marketplace that has been validated by many customers and most significantly by the Barcelona Football Club. 

The Plastiks platform is fully operational, running at 100% efficiency, enabling recycling entities to issue credits for plastic recycling. This mechanism allows both individuals and businesses to acquire these credits, ensuring the recovery of plastic and providing crucial funding to recycling entities. This support empowers them to achieve their long-term objectives and drive meaningful environmental change.

We have a strong team and customers and partners that shows our ability to develop solution successfully. 

The process of developing and implementing the marketplace was done over a period of 2 years and has been able to integrate twenty waste recovery entities in twenty different countries with Barcelona Football Club and their fans. 

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1*

Required

Policy script definition and implementation in the test environment to define the liquidity pool linked to the resource. When there is a purchase, the creator receives the tokens and can exchange them later on for stable coins.

Milestone output(s)

• Smart contracts of the protocol in Github

Acceptance criteria 

• The smart contracts of the protocol are uploaded in Github with tests
• The smart contracts are deployed in testnet for Plastiks

Duration: 8 weeks

Milestone 2:*

Required

Create the UI and backend integration for the lender, that interacts with the smart contracts, where the user can lend the money and get the profit once the resource has been bought.

Backend to handle the connectivity between the smart contracts and the UI, and deploy in the test environment

Milestone output(s)

• Backend in Typescript uploaded in Github
• UI in React JS uploaded in Github

Acceptance criteria 

• The code is uploaded in Github
• User can connect with their Cardano wallet to the ecosystem, lend money and get the profit in testnet

Duration: 8 weeks

Milestone 3:

Create the UI and backend integration for the supplier, that interacts with the smart contracts, where the user can get paid in custom tokens after selling their product and get stablecoin after a period of time.

Backend to handle the connectivity between the smart contracts and the UI, and deploy in the test environment

Milestone output(s)

• Backend in Typescript uploaded in Github
• UI in React JS uploaded in Github

Acceptance criteria 

• The code is uploaded in Github
• User can connect with their Cardano wallet to the ecosystem, get paid when selling the resource and get stable coins after a period of time

Duration: 8 weeks

Milestone 4:

Create a simple dashboard to see the activity of the protocol where everybody can see what is going on.

In the case of Plastiks the KPIs to show will be:

- How much plastic has been recovered

• How much plastic has been recovered
• How much money there is lent in the pool
• Who is next on the list to lend money

Milestone output(s)

• Backend in Typescript uploaded in Github
• UI in React JS uploaded in Github

Acceptance criteria 

• The code is uploaded in Github
• The dashboard show the activity of the ReFi protocol displaying the KPIs mentioned above

Duration: 8 weeks

Milestone 5:

Implement the protocol for the Plastiks use case and onboard all the stakeholders, lenders and recovery entities

Milestone output(s)

• Example of usage with a real case for Plastiks

Acceptance criteria 

• The protocol is deployed in production for the use case of Plastiks
• The Plastiks ecosystem starts using it

Duration: 8 weeks

Final Milestone:

Create the documentation for everybody to use the protocol, the closing video and wrapping up

Milestone output(s)

• Documentation about the protocol
• Closing report
• Closing video

Acceptance criteria 

• Documentation to use the protocol is available
• Application is live on Cardano
• Closeup video and report

Duration: 4 weeks 

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

We will use the Plastiks team to work on this project because the key team members have been working together for the last three years. In addition, we will partner with other strategic Cardano partners like NMKR and the Cardano Foundation as well as the developer community.

Daniel Garcia, CTO, Project LEAD on all CARDANO matters.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/danigarciaperez/

André Vanyi-Robin, CEO:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrevanyirobin/

Delfi Achinelly, Plastiks Verification, Methodology and Audit

https://www.linkedin.com/in/delfina-achinelly-286319125/

Ana Aguilar, Operations Director

https://www.linkedin.com/in/anaguilarmeca/

Raúl, Sr. Developer 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/raulvila/

Andrés, Sr. Developer

https://www.linkedin.com/in/andresmalopez/

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

TOTAL BUDGET: 150,000 ADA

Milestone 1: 35,000 ADA

• Smart contract development and implementation in test environment
• Policy script definition for liquidity pool
• GitHub repository setup and initial code upload
• Testnet deployment Breakdown:
• Development team (4 weeks): 25,000 ADA
• Testing and quality assurance: 7,000 ADA
• DevOps and deployment: 3,000 ADA

Milestone 2: 32,000 ADA

• UI creation for lenders
• Backend integration with smart contracts
• Wallet connectivity implementation Breakdown:
• Frontend development: 15,000 ADA
• Backend development: 12,000 ADA
• UI/UX design: 5,000 ADA

Milestone 3: 21,000 ADA

• Dashboard development for protocol activity monitoring
• Implementation of KPI tracking (plastic recovered, money lent, etc.) Breakdown:
• Dashboard development: 12,000 ADA
• Data integration and processing: 6,000 ADA
• UI/UX refinement: 3,000 ADA

Milestone 4: 21,000 ADA

• Production deployment for Plastiks use case
• Onboarding of stakeholders, lenders, and recovery entities
• Initial real-world testing and optimization Breakdown:
• Deployment and integration: 10,000 ADA
• Onboarding support: 6,000 ADA
• Performance optimization: 5,000 ADA

Final Milestone: 9,000 ADA

• Comprehensive documentation creation
• Closing report compilation
• Production of closing video
• Final adjustments and bug fixes Breakdown:
• Documentation and report writing: 4,000 ADA
• Video production: 3,000 ADA
• Final development tweaks: 2,000 ADA

This budget allocation ensures a comprehensive development process, from initial smart contract creation through to final deployment and documentation. Each milestone includes allocations for development work, testing, and necessary supporting activities. The final budget of 150,000 ADA is distributed to prioritize the core development in earlier milestones while ensuring adequate resources for deployment, onboarding, and final documentation.

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

1. Cost-Effective Development:

• The project budget has been carefully calculated to align with current market rates in the blockchain industry, ensuring competitive pricing without compromising on quality.
• Our experienced development team's expertise allows for efficient execution, with realistic timelines that reflect the complexity of tasks without unnecessary delays.
• The cost structure represents a balanced allocation of resources across all project phases, from initial development to final deployment and documentation.

1. Leveraging Existing Resources:

• Plastiks brings a significant advantage by building upon its existing infrastructure and partnerships. Starting this project from scratch would incur substantially higher costs.
• Our established relationships with major brands like Barcelona Football Club and Danone provide immediate credibility and potential for rapid adoption, maximizing the return on investment for the Cardano ecosystem.

1. Opening New Verticals for Cardano:

• This project introduces the growing plastic credit industry to Cardano, creating a new and promising vertical within the ecosystem.
• By bringing Real World Assets (RWAs) in the form of plastic credits to Cardano, we're paving the way for similar environmental and sustainability-focused projects, potentially attracting a whole new segment of users and developers to the platform.

1. Ecosystem Benefits:

• The Plastiks ReFi protocol will significantly increase on-chain activity, benefiting ADA holders, stake pool operators, and DReps through increased network usage and potential value appreciation.
• As an open-source project, it will contribute to the growth of Cardano's developer community, providing valuable resources and examples for future projects.
• The project will enhance Cardano's reputation in the sustainability and ESG sectors, potentially attracting institutional investors and large corporations to the ecosystem.

1. Long-Term Impact and Scalability:

• The infrastructure developed for this project can be adapted for other types of environmental credits or RWAs, providing a foundation for future growth and innovation within the Cardano ecosystem.
• As plastic credit adoption grows globally, driven by increasing environmental regulations and corporate sustainability commitments, the value and usage of this protocol are expected to scale significantly over time.

1. Market Position and Network Effects:

• Plastiks' existing partnerships and market presence provide a unique advantage. By bringing this established network to Cardano, we're not just developing a protocol, but also importing an entire ecosystem of users and use cases.
• This project has the potential to make Cardano the blockchain of choice for environmental credits, creating network effects that could lead to exponential growth in users and transactions.

1. Community and Environmental Impact:

• Beyond the technical and economic benefits, this project aligns with Cardano's commitment to positive global impact. It provides a tangible way for the Cardano community to contribute to environmental sustainability.
• The potential for global impact through plastic waste recovery adds immeasurable value to the project, enhancing Cardano's reputation as a blockchain focused on real-world solutions.

In conclusion, this project offers exceptional value for money by combining cost-effective development with the potential for significant ecosystem growth and real-world impact. It leverages Plastiks' existing resources and partnerships to provide Cardano with a unique position in the rapidly growing market for environmental credits. The long-term benefits to the Cardano ecosystem, in terms of increased adoption, enhanced functionality, and positive environmental impact, far outweigh the initial investment.