Welcome to the Request Network ecosystem update for August 2024.

The Ecosystem Update focuses on protocol usage and our vision to build an ecosystem of decentralized apps for payment requests. Here, you will find our ecosystem updates, major news and announcements, and anything else that interests the community.

The current ecosystem built around the Request Network protocol includes the following builders: Huma Finance (lending and borrowing), Joba Network and TalentLayer (future-of-work platforms), BSOS (supply chain financing), Copra Finance (lending and borrowing), FLock (machine-learning credit scoring), intrXn (payments and invoicing) and Request Finance (invoicing and payroll). If you’re interested in what we are building together with the previously mentioned companies and want to share your vision with us, don’t hesitate to apply to our grants program.

Tech update

Payment Widget and Request Checkout Playground

In August, we released and deployed the Payment Widget and Request Checkout Playground. The Payment Widget is a web component that allows a payer to make a payment *before* persisting a request, thus shortening the critical path for e-commerce apps and checkout pages. The Request Checkout Playground is a simple web app that showcases the Payment Widget and all the ways it can be configured. These tools are built using the Request Receipts (aka. Pay-before-Persist) feature described in previous monthly newsletters. 

To better help founders and builders, here are two videos we recorded. In them, we show a demo of the template and an integration example.

Simplified Web Component Interface in React

The Web Components now support a simplified interface when used in a React application. App developers need only to import the component from the <web-component>/react directory. Then, they can pass the configuration parameters as props, like a native React component.

Previously, app developers would have to use `useRef()` to create a reference to the web component, set its properties, and pass the reference as a prop.

Declarative Payments Example

We developed an example script that uses Declarative Payments to settle a Request.

Highlights from August

Payments campaign

We launched a campaign focused on payments in August to support the launch of the Request Checkout template and showcase why our infrastructure is the easy and secure choice for adding Web3 payments to a platform. We unveiled a new website page about Web3 payments and published an article about crypto payments along with more than a dozen targeted social media posts.

New hire

Let’s warmly welcome Rodrigo Serviuc Pavezi, a senior full-stack developer who joined the Request Network team in August. Rodrigo was previously the blockchain lead for one of our ecosystem builders, FLock, and has around 20 years of experience in software development. You can connect with Rodrigo on LinkedIn, X, or the Request Network Discord server. 

With Rodrigo, our team is now eight people strong 💪

LinkedIn content

We're expanding our audience 🌐 As engagement on X is dwindling for everyone unless you post about controversies, we'll be more active on LinkedIn because we believe it may be a better avenue to make meaningful connections. We’re looking at polls, live streams, a new newsletter format, and more! 

New partnership with FraXn

A new partnership was made public in August. Welcome FraXn to our ecosystem of partners 👏 This new partnership will provide a seamless, secure, and transparent experience for anyone interested in fractionalized real estate investment opportunities. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because FraXn is an offshoot of IntrXn, another one of our ecosystem partners, handling Web3 invoicing.

REQ Token Burn

We performed a token burn worth $1,247.76, with 12,089 REQ tokens sent to the burn address. 

This brings the total number of tokens burned to 420,014, according to the community-run dashboard.

Protocol Usage in August

The above visual illustrates Request Network transactions (e.g., invoice creation, approval, and/or rejection).

WHAT A MONTH! Breaking record after record, we reached 15,734 batched transactions in August, while the number of individual transactions reached 20,953! We’re looking forward to September, which can potentially bring the first month with over 20k batched transactions. Needless to say, the entire team is very excited about the constant growth!

Note: a batched transaction can contain multiple individual transactions (such as in the case of a company’s payroll process). The token burn occurs once per batch transaction. 

ABOUT REQUEST NETWORK

The Request Network Foundation’s mission is to re-invent accounting and finance by creating a decentralized network of interoperable apps that promotes transparency and real-time reporting.

We inspire and educate developers, partners, and authorities to use Request Network and build an open-source, seamless, and interoperable financial ecosystem. 

We’re building a network that connects businesses worldwide, giving them ways to do business at the speed of the internet. 

Source : Request - Sep 24, 2024