The Ripio Credit Network is a network dedicated to providing credit using smart contracts. Ripio plans to start the network in Argentina and parts of Latin America that lack banking. This is another project intended at "banking the unbanked," this time using a decentralized P2P credit system.
I think this project looks great and I plan on buying into the ICO. Here are a few reasons I really like it:
Lots of VC attention. If this is true it would definitely have really good short term return potential since those kinds of buyers aren't going to sell quickly.
Ripio already has a credit system using bitcoin in Argentina. According to the whitepaper, they are going to begin providing access to the Ripio Credit Network to their existing customer base immediately after the network is deployed. So many projects are just vaporware with only a promise of a working project. But this project will be functional almost right out of the box, and have an existing user base that will start using the network immediately.
It gets rid of geographical limits to lending and borrowing. With this technology, in the future it would be possible for a borrower in Africa to get a loan from a lender in Latin America with no middle man besides the cosigner. I think it's inevitable that something in the crypto space takes over P2P lending, and Ripio is the first in this territory as far as I know.
Sorry it's too late to buy into this ICO, I think the whitelisting process is over. It sounds like a good long term hold though, and picking it up after it hits exchanges might be a good move.