Traxion Offers Blockchain Solution to Philippine Farmers

Blockchain-based financial services provider Traxion said it is introducing blockchain technology in the southern Philippines island of Mindanao that will allow people to receive their salary securely using electronic wallets.

TraXion chief executive officer Ann Cuisia explained at a recent event:

“By engaging farmland owners, they can use the QR code. The QR code will be their e-wallet and can be used in cashless transactions. They can also cash out it through ‘bayad’ [payment] centers.”

The digital wallet, Cuisia explained, would give farmers the option to receive their salaries without carrying a sizeable amount of cash.

"Imagine underserved being able to experience inclusiveness regarding financial services. Imagine farmers accessing fair-pricing without intermediaries, the profitability would be different. The type of livelihood would be elevated. Imagine the farmers becoming the first and never again the last in the chain value. This is what we can promise," she added.

Cuisia assured farmers that blockchain technology is not as complicated as most people think and could be accessed even in remote hinterlands. Indeed, the technology should be seen as an opportunity for farmers to store information and transaction and share the data to promote transparency, traceability, and integrity.

TraXion is currently working with more than 600,000 sari-sari stores across the country to encourage them to use blockchain when transacting with farmers.

The majority of Filipino farmers have no bank accounts, partly because they are hesitant to go to banks as they usually are not well-dressed and wear only slippers. But with blockchain, TraXion aims to encourage the underserved sector to be served by financial institutions.

In a statement, TraXion said it would show the benefits of blockchain through the Farm to Table Consumer App. The company is developing IFarms, a mobile app for farmers, producers, consumers (hotels, restaurants or even households). This app aims to eradicate the middleman. The consumers can directly order the harvest from the farmers and the producers, and at the same time the farmers can receive their payments on time and manage their crop effectively.

From the north, the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) - a government economic zone in the northern part of the Philippines – announced earlier this month it would create a $100 million cryptocurrency and blockchain hub to challenge the Switzerland Crypto Valley.

The Philippines’ version of a crypto valley is seen to generate more than 10,000 jobs in the business processing outsourcing sector.