The deliverables from SCF20 were expected to be:

• Move the apps from testnet to mainnet
• Two APKs for making payments between a tourist and a vendor
• Alfred Pay API integration - deposit workflow
• Alfred Pay API integration - withdrawal workflow
• Alfred pay integration - test on-ramp / off-ramp of USDC & BRZ
• Mykobo integration - Test on-ramp / off-ramp of EURC
• User interface refactor/improvement
• SEP 6 implementation to enable deposit and withdrawal
• SEP 12 implementation to enable KYC in app
• Develop user interface to deposit and withdrawal money
• App test and polishing
• A professionally designed website with the branding and app design integrated.

However, Emigro transitioned from out-sourced development to bringing on a full-time co-founder / CTO. With this transition we changed the deliverables to increase the functionality of the traveler’s app for the first public release.

New deliverables completed:

• A single mainnet traveler's app in the Google Play and Apple App Stores, with a beta of the other, vendor-focused app for future development
• Kado anchor integration for USDC deposits and withdrawals (ready in a few weeks)
• Improved account creation and login functionality
• The ability to both scan a barcode to make a payment and create a barcode to receive a payment
• Automated build pipeline and release app process for both Google Play and Apple Store
• Security: storing the local data encrypted
• Several fixes: login, scrolling, navigation, typo, outdated libs, broken payment flow, state management, etc
• Delete user account feature
• Adopt a high level UX component library replacing nativewind by gluestack
• Several UX improvements
• Add swap tokens functionality for local wallet
• Add transfer functionality of sending assets for an external wallet
• Generate QR code for payments
• Setup PIN and ask for it in all sending transactions

Soroban Smart Contracts for Instant Payment in Brazil

To enable the Emigro app, we propose integrating with the Brazilian Financial System (SFN) through a local Bank provider (BaaS) to become a Pix indirect participant. This integration will facilitate instant payments using Pix QR Code or Pix Copy & Paste. The process involves validating the code, obtaining user confirmation, and executing the payment.

On the Stellar Network, we will deploy smart contracts using Soroban to validate transactions and manage token movements, ensuring secure and efficient transactions. Given the complexity of integrating the two platforms, which involves money movement and potential points of failure (PoFs), the majority of the implementation will be asynchronous. We will implement guardrails and conduct extensive testing to mitigate risks. We should proceed with caution, as smart contracts will play a crucial role in ensuring that stablecoin debits from the client's wallet occur only after the vendor has received the funds in their bank accounts.

Measuring completion: Publish new endpoints in the API for access by the Emigro app.

Estimated: 7 weeks

Budget: $50k (500 developer hours for integration with the external BaaS API, and 125 developer hours for deployment and testing on staging and production environments).

Implementation of Pix QR Code and Copy & Paste Payments

The Pix code follows a specific format and necessitates verification at the Bank partner to load payment information such as receiver, amount, description, etc. Once the Soroban implementation is finalized and the API endpoints are published, the app will be equipped to retrieve this data and complete the payment process. The implementation encompasses various components, including utilizing the camera for Pix QR Code scanning, incorporating screens for payment review, confirmation, success, and failure, as well as integrating transaction history.

Measuring completion: Users can seamlessly execute Pix payments using the Emigro app

Estimated: 2-3 weeks

Budget:  $20k (200 developer hours allocated for integrating the Emigro app with the new Emigro Payment API, and 50 developer hours designated for deployment and testing on the production environment)

Implementation of SEP-30 Account Recovery

Emigro is targeting non-crypto users, those that are used to securing their account with a password, one that can be recovered by the service provider. As Emigro operates as a non-custodial wallet, users are responsible for safeguarding their security keys. Account recovery with SEP-30 is a critical feature aimed at enabling users to regain access to their Stellar accounts in cases where they have lost their private keys. By implementing SEP-30, Emigro users will have the capability to recover access to all wallet transactions directly within the app.

Measuring completion: The Emigro app empowers users to successfully regain access to their Stellar account

Estimated: 2-3 weeks

Budget:  $20k (200 dev hours to develop the SEP-30 integration in backend API and Emigro app, and 50 dev hours to deploy and test on production)

Blake Sieders, Founder & CEO (Canadian)

LinkedIn

A multi-career generalist with more than two decades of professional experience. Blake started his career in the mass manufacturing industry, designing machines and processes for the automotive industry. Then he moved to the mining, oil and gas, and waste-water treatment industries managing multi-million dollar equipment fabrication projects. Later, Blake became a licensed Canadian immigration consultant, helping hundreds of Brazilians and others start a new life in Canada. Seeing the opportunity for software to streamline the legal processes, Blake designed and launched an immigration SaaS product in 2017, and since moved on to fintech for cross-border money movement while becoming a digital nomad in Brazil and building Emigro.

Osvaldo Matos Júnior, Co-Founder & CTO (Brazilian)

LinkedIn

GitHub

Osvaldo is an accomplished full-stack engineer with expertise spanning Python, TypeScript, Flutter, React Native, as well as domains such as Information Retrieval and Recommender Systems. With over a decade of experience, he has been pivotal in the inception and growth of numerous startup ventures. During his tenure at Jusbrasil, spanning 12 years, Osvaldo played a key role in creating a project from its nascent stages to a platform boasting 44 million unique monthly users. This achievement culminated in Series C investment from Softbank. His contributions spanned various domains, including leading teams in frontend development, crawling, payment systems, SaaS, and chatbots.

Transitioning to Nubank, the leading Fintech in Brazil and Latin America, Osvaldo served as an Engineering Leader for two years, overseeing the Purchases and Bills division of Nuconta with a team of over 35 engineers. Continuing his journey, Osvaldo assumed the role of CTO at Lend, a credit infrastructure fintech backed by a16z. Here, he played a pivotal role in establishing the project and assembling a team of 36 engineers, contributing significantly to its growth and success.

Status as-of March 2024

Emigro is the fiat-pegged stablecoin, card-less mobile payments wallet for digital nomads, long-term travelers, expats and immigrants.

Emigro is a self-custody mobile wallet app for the tourism industry targeted at international travelers and small and medium sized tourism-related vendors, with Brazil as the first travel destination. The app can generate a dynamic QR code containing the vendor details and the details of the payment requested. The consumer can scan the QR code and approve the payment. The app has fast fiat on/off ramp capabilities, with instant international payments, including the currency exchange. The functionality will mimic traditional fintech apps such as Wise and Revolut, competing against the credit card networks, with no initial focus on the broader crypto industry.

Brazil was chosen as the initial market because it has a large international tourism industry which is now using Pix that foreigners can't easily access to make payments. In three years Pix has grabbed 35% of all payments market share, which is on par with debit and credit cards combined, who lost 5% share in this time to Pix because vendors would prefer to accept it over cash or foreign credit cards, which they pay 3-7% in fees to accept. Pix is so successful that other LatAm countries, such as Colombia and Chile, are looking to replicate it. Emigro will enable Pix for foreigners and its international equivalents, focusing on cross-border C2B and B2B payments, connecting the best fiat on/off ramp methods directly from bank accounts, with lower fees and instant settlement.

Emigro is currently in private testing mode in the Google Play Store and Apple Testflight, with the App Store acceptance, but not yet released. There's an in-progress upgrade happening with the nTokens anchor that we need to be completed to be able to launch in Brazil. Emigro will publicly launch and exhibit both apps in April at the Web Summit Rio event that will have more than 30k participants from the tech industry.  

Please inquire with osvaldo@emigro.io to get access to the code and the links to the apps.

Roadmap for SCF25

While instant ramping to and from the Emigro app with Pix is available from our Brazilian anchor, we’re going to extend the capabilities of the Emigro app by creating a fiat liquidity pool and instant payment model that will allow our customers to pay directly at the point-of-sale with no additional software or hardware requirements by the vendor. No knowledge of crypto or the Emigro app would be necessary to support this payment method by the vendors and the travelers only need to know that Pix is accepted by the vendor.

When the traveler scans the Pix QR code at the point of sale terminal (POS), Emigro will invoke a Soroban smart contract to escrow the payment funds in the traveler’s wallet and reduce the balance to initiate the process. The API will trigger a Pix payment from the Emigro bank account, (fiat liquidity pool), to the payment service provider (PSP) of the POS terminal, who manages the funds on behalf of the vendor. When the PSP notifies Emigro’s bank that the payment is made the smart contract will unlock the funds in the traveler’s wallet and send them to an Emigro wallet to be sent later to the anchor for off-ramping and reconciliation, with the fiat going back to the liquidity pool account. If the payment to the PSP fails, the smart contract will unlock the funds in the traveler's wallet and be added to the balance. The payment process could be less than the Stellar ledger closing time for successful or failed transactions.

There is no custody taken of the traveler’s funds, with Emigro putting fiat at risk to facilitate the model. This model can be replicated in other markets with instant payment systems, with local operations and bank accounts required.

Out-source development will be utilized, as required, to supplement the Emigro engineering expertise and increase our rate of development. A law firm in Brazil, specializing in fintech and crypto, has been chosen to assist Emigro with compliance requirements.

SCF20 was expected to get Emigro to a public launch with Stellar Classic, which it will in less than a month. SCF25 is taking Emigro beyond that and introducing Soroban features that will make it competitive with the best web2 cross-border payment apps and the credit card networks, while being uniquely positioned in the Brazilian market to give access for foreigners to Pix.

Post-launch, with some demonstration of traction in the market, we plan to raise a venture capital Seed round in Q3 of this year, which will fund us on our journey to product-market fit.

As mentioned in the previous application, Emigro has been showcased at several tech and tourism industry events in Brazil, with positive feedback from potential customers, partners, government officials, and investors. A waiting list is constantly being updated from events attended such as:

• Web Summit Rio 2023
• ABAV Brazilian Association of Tourism Agencies 2023
• Rio Innovation Week 2023
• Carnaval Expo 2023
• Turistech Summit 2024 (tourism technology Brazil)

Post-launch, Emigro will be actively seeking partnerships with other Stellar projects to extend our capabilities.