CreditChain

## Inspiration

Across Africa, many people—hustlers, market women, artisans—are locked out of the formal banking system. They don’t have pay slips or collateral, but they do have community trust. Traditional susu (rotating savings groups) have long filled this gap, yet they remain offline, error-prone, and inaccessible to new users.

We were inspired to modernize this street finance tradition and give it structure, safety, and scalability using tech.

## What we built

StreetCredit is a peer-to-peer lending and savings platform for underserved communities. Users can form susu groups, request microloans, and build credit through community trust, not bank statements. The system tracks repayments, automates reminders, and assigns a street credit score to help users unlock more borrowing power over time.

It’s a financial solution rooted in African culture, built for the people formal finance leaves behind.

## How we built it

• Built entirely on bolt.new
• Created flows for loan requests, group creation, and automated repayment reminders
• Developed a logic for susu rotation, reputation scoring, and group rules
• Added mock wallet functionality to simulate MoMo-style loan disbursement and repayment
• Built tracking logic for payments: Paid / Due / Overdue
• Created a StreetCredit score system that adjusts based on user behavior and history
• Designed for eventual blockchain or Web3 transition via smart contract simulation

## What we learned

People trust people—not systems. But systems are necessary to scale and reduce misunderstandings. We learned how to embed existing social finance norms (like peer pressure, honor, rotation) into digital logic while preserving dignity and flexibility.

We also learned that financial dignity doesn’t mean complexity—users want simple, clear, and respectful systems.

## Challenges we faced

• Creating a reputation system that’s fair but not overly punitive
• Designing rotation logic for susu payouts that accommodates both manual and automated flows
• Balancing group-based vs. individual lending needs
• Simulating MoMo transactions without access to live mobile money APIs
• Building trust into UX for users who have never used financial apps before

🔧 Built with

• Bolt.new
• JavaScript logic flows
• Local database schema for users, loans, groups, repayment logs
• Smart contract simulation (non-blockchain MVP logic)
• SMS/WhatsApp logic for reminders (Twilio-ready)
• Firebase / Supabase (optional data layer)

Built With

• bolt
• supabase