Sarafu Network is one of the most powerful real-world examples of how grassroots financial innovation can transform communities. Built and maintained by Grassroots Economics in Kenya, Sarafu enables thousands of people—many excluded from formal banking—to create and use community currencies for everyday transactions.
Rather than relying on external aid or top-down funding, Sarafu communities issue their own digital tokens, based on mutual credit principles. These tokens circulate within local economies, allowing people to trade goods and services even when cash is scarce. During crises like droughts or lockdowns, these currencies have kept local economies alive.
Though Sarafu predates much of Web3, it offers critical lessons for the onchain world:
- Money as trust: Currencies can emerge from social agreements, not just institutions.
- Regenerative economics: Value flows are designed to sustain the commons.
- Decentralized allocation: Communities decide how and when to create money.
Sarafu’s infrastructure has evolved to include digital ledgers and blockchain back-ends, with growing exploration of how Ethereum-based tools (like Allo Protocol) could support similar models at scale, without compromising local autonomy.
It’s not just a story of innovation—it’s a proof point for regenerative finance, grassroots sovereignty, and network-native economic design.