We are participating in the Base Africa Buildathon to drive the adoption of USDC on the Base network by helping business owners in our local community embrace crypto as a payment method. Through our platform, StableFlow, we aim to empower Nigerian businesses with seamless on-chain USDC payments and instant fiat payouts, bridging the gap between traditional finance and blockchain technology. This buildathon provides the perfect opportunity to innovate, collaborate, and contribute to a future where crypto payments are accessible and beneficial to local businesses.

We are focused on improving accessibility and reliability in cross-border payments, particularly in underserved regions like Nigeria. While there has been progress in adopting digital currencies and blockchain technology, the current infrastructure presents significant barriers for everyday users who rely on seamless fiat transactions. The volatility of many cryptocurrencies, high fees, and the delays associated with converting crypto to local currencies like the Naira limit the usability of blockchain for real-world payments. Our approach centers on USDC, a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar, to eliminate volatility and provide a reliable bridge between crypto and traditional finance.

Another key challenge is the lack of user-friendly solutions for converting crypto into fiat. Existing platforms are often too complex for users unfamiliar with blockchain technology or present obstacles like long processing times and high conversion fees. Although USDC-to-Naira conversions are not yet fully functional, business owners can withdraw funds in USDC, and the app remains fully operational in other areas.

Additionally, we aim to address the limited adoption of Web3 solutions in local communities. Despite growing interest in crypto, adoption is held back by a lack of trust, education, and practical use cases that integrate smoothly into daily life. Our platform seeks to bridge this gap by offering a service that solves a tangible problem—affordable, seamless cross-border payments—while promoting Web3 adoption through practical utility and ease of use.

One of the core challenges we are focusing on is the accessibility and reliability of cross-border payments, especially in underserved regions like Nigeria. While there has been progress in adopting digital currencies and blockchain technology, the current infrastructure presents significant barriers for everyday users who rely on seamless fiat transactions. The volatility of many cryptocurrencies, high fees, and delays associated with converting crypto to local currencies like the Naira hinder the usability of blockchain for real-world payments. By focusing on USDC (a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar), we aim to eliminate volatility issues, providing a reliable bridge between the world of crypto and traditional finance.
Another challenge we are addressing is the complexity and lack of user-friendly solutions for converting crypto into fiat. Many existing platforms are either too complicated for users unfamiliar with blockchain technology or present barriers, such as long processing times and high conversion fees. Our solution simplifies this process by providing direct, instant USDC-to-Naira conversion on the Base network, a highly scalable and efficient blockchain. This drastically reduces transaction times and fees, making the process more accessible to users who need fast, affordable, and secure transfers.
Additionally, we are targeting the limited adoption of Web3 solutions within local communities. Despite the growing interest in crypto, adoption remains low due to a lack of trust, education, and practical use cases that integrate smoothly into people’s daily lives. Our product seeks to bridge this gap by providing a service that solves a tangible problem—instant, affordable cross-border payments—while simultaneously promoting Web3 adoption through real-world utility and ease of use.

Throughout the development process, we encountered several significant challenges. One major hurdle was implementing specific APIs for our payment system, which required navigating technical and integration complexities. Additionally, fully transitioning to onchain technology presented unique obstacles for the team.

For many of us, this was our first major project involving deep integration of onchain technologies. While some team members had previous experience building Web2 applications, such as web apps for displaying cryptocurrency information, the shift to onchain development was far more demanding. Unlike Web2, where tools and technologies are well-documented and supported by extensive resources on platforms like Stack Overflow, GitHub, and YouTube, many onchain tools are relatively new with limited documentation. This often left us without clear solutions when we encountered unexpected issues.

We had to invest considerable effort into understanding how these new tools and libraries worked, especially given the scarcity of use cases demonstrating their application in the specific ways we intended to use them. The time constraints added to the pressure, requiring us to quickly learn and adapt to this evolving technology.

Another key challenge was designing the platform to be user-friendly for people with little to no onchain experience. Our goal was to make the app intuitive, allowing users to navigate seamlessly without needing tutorials. Thanks to a well-thought-out design, this proved to be the least difficult aspect, as the user experience came together more smoothly than anticipated.

Overall, these challenges made the past two weeks an incredibly educational and rewarding experience for the team. Despite the difficulties, the journey has deepened our understanding of onchain development and positioned us for even bigger explorations in the future.