Pinto is my best bet for helping people like me across the globe.

Growing up in a developing nation, I witnessed firsthand how traditional financial systems can fail those who need them most. In my country, accessing basic financial services that many take for granted is a complex and costly endeavor. Want to buy US dollars? Prepare to pay massive spreads. Interested in investing in the stock market? Be ready to navigate through layers of bureaucracy and hefty fees. The system is so opaque that most people opt to simply do nothing and let their money sit in a basic savings account, earning negligible interest. Considering the high inflation rates of our local currency, people's wealth isn't just stagnating—it's being actively destroyed.

My journey into blockchain technology began when my family heard about crypto and asked for help investing in it. Like many others, I was initially drawn to meme coins. It was hard to resist their allure—every day brought news of astronomical gains, with centralized exchanges actively promoting these success stories. For people in developing nations desperate for a way out of financial hardship, these stories of overnight wealth were the perfect bait.

However, as I delved deeper into the meme coin ecosystem, I discovered its true nature: a brutal zero-sum game built exclusively to extract value from players. The winners were almost always predetermined before each new coin launched, with insiders positioning themselves to profit from the hopes of everyday people. While I was fortunate to learn this lesson before suffering significant financial losses, countless others continue to be taken advantage of. Every day, many lose their hard-earned savings chasing the false promise of easy riches.

I realized that the way forward wasn't gaining something through the zero-sum crypto casino. Instead, it was about finding something that improved users' lives by providing them with a genuinely valuable service.

This is when I decided to dive deeper into DeFi. I found the idea of stablecoins to be very impressive: the ability to hold USD on-chain was revolutionary for someone from my background. It wasn't just about avoiding fees or bypassing bureaucracy—it was about having genuine financial autonomy for the first time.

Moving our assets into USD stablecoins improved the quality of our lives dramatically: no longer did my family have to worry about the dollar exchange rate, wondering if our local currency would suddenly plummet in value. Being able to hold stable dollars meant that for the first time, instead of constantly worrying about our financial survival, we could relax and plan for growth, building our wealth for the future.

I experienced firsthand the impact DeFi can have on regular people.

And I wanted to be more than a user. I wanted to contribute.

This new world still raised concerns. Many existing solutions in the space remain centralized and opaque, posing risks to users' financial well-being. This realization led me to Pinto, a project that represents hope for truly transparent and permissionless finance accessible to everyone.

Personally, working for Pinto is worth it because of the team and our shared vision. From day one, I felt a deep connection with colleagues who not only appreciated my work but understood its importance for people in fragile situations. There's something profoundly meaningful about being part of a global team united by a common goal: creating financial tools that work for everyone.

Our team spans multiple continents and time zones, yet we're connected by more than just code commits and video calls. We're bound by a shared understanding that the future of finance must be more inclusive, transparent, and accessible. Every line of code I write is a step towards that future.

-Anonymous Farmer

March 2025