Please describe your proposed solution.

Enabling credit card payments is vital for widespread app adoption in the Cardano ecosystem. To promote inclusivity, more Cardano apps should accept credit card payments.

Dynamic Strategies, a niche player in the crypto space, creates innovative applications like Cardano Beam, which adds GPS coordinates to NFTs and other assets on Cardano. Initially, we developed an open-source code for connecting web wallets to apps and released it on GitHub. This code has become a go-to resource for developers starting their app journey.

We propose open-sourcing the Fiat on-ramp developed for our Cardano Beam events marketplace. We aim to use the widely recognized NextJs framework to make it accessible to a broad developer audience familiar with Web2.

The on-ramp employs a cross-chain bridge, which is essential for payment processors operating on EVM blockchains. When users pay with a credit card, the payment is converted into a transaction on an EVM blockchain, and assets on the Cardano blockchain are transferred using a custom daemon provided in the repo.

Functionality:

1. Tokens or NFTs are minted on Cardano and held in a central wallet, distributed upon receiving credit card payments.
2. A smart contract on an EVM network (e.g., Polygon) links to the Cardano asset via its policy id.
3. The asset is listed for sale on the website, with credit card payment as an option.
4. The buyer undergoes KYC through the payment processor, and payment is processed in USD, EUR, or other credit card currency.
5. The payment is converted to the EVM chain's currency (e.g., Matic) and sent to the smart contract.
6. A custom daemon monitors payments, transferring the token or NFT to the buyer on the Cardano network seamlessly within 1-2 minutes.

The process is client-friendly, resembling a Web2 transaction. Developers can customize the visibility of Cardano blockchain elements, ensuring a smooth experience for less tech-savvy users.

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community.

The main goal of the project is to provide developers in Cardano a template of how to integrate Credit Card payments into their projects in under a week

This project is to take the working product and package it into a separate github repo for the developer community to use in their projects. The solution is working in production in the Cardano Beam app and is used to sell NFT tickets to events

Introducing an open-source fiat on-ramp as a user-friendly solution allows developers to seamlessly integrate Credit Card payment capabilities into their projects. Utilizing a NextJs template, developers can easily incorporate this feature into their existing projects or create new ones from the provided repository.

This initiative aims to boost Cardano adoption by attracting non-crypto users to the ecosystem. Additionally, it will enhance developers' understanding by offering a straightforward example of implementing a fiat on-ramp for their businesses or DAOs, fostering broader knowledge within the community.

The benefits of open-sourcing this for the Cardano app developers is that they get an example code to get started immediately, a tested process that works and a payment processor that pays. The time between deciding to use and being able to accept fiat payments is less than a week.

The project will be a success if we get interest from developers in the ecosystem. Judging from our previous large open-source release, which was the first wallet connector for web wallets on Cardano, the popularity grew very quickly and we received great feedback from users.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

This solution is already working in production on the Events page of the Cardano Beam app where users can buy NFT tickets to events, pay for them with their credit card and have the ticket delivered to their Cardano wallet: <https://cardanobeam.app/events>

Project Lead: Dmitry Shibaev

Dmitry Shibaev is an experienced Project Lead and Senior Developer with a proven track record in both big tech and financial markets. His expertise spans 5 years in delivering large-scale SAP projects for energy companies in southern Europe and 15 years in financial markets, where he successfully led significant projects at a prominent investment bank across London, Singapore, and Amsterdam.

Open-Source Contributions:

Dmitry has actively contributed to the open-source community, showcasing his skills in building tools and fostering collaboration:

• Developed a wallet connector for DApps and Wallets, utilized by the Cardano Beam Web App. The GitHub repository has garnered 100+ stars and has been forked by IOHK.
• GitHub Repo
• App Demo 1
• App Demo 2
• Contributed to the Cardano Developer Portal with a quick start guide on connecting Web Apps to different Cardano web-wallets.
• Created a Public GraphQL endpoint with a web client, enabling users to query the Cardano blockchain conveniently.
• GitHub Repo
• App
• Developed a Staking Reward Calculator synced to the blockchain, providing insights into expected payouts from different pools.
• App
• Contributed Cardano Wallet Functions for integration into React Native apps.
• GitHub Repo

Full Stack Expertise:

Dmitry is proficient in both Web2 and Web3 technologies, showcasing his skills in building the full stack behind Dynamic Strategies (https://dynamicstrategies.io) and Cardano Beam (https://cardanobeam.app).

Plutus Pioneers Cohort:

Dmitry was part of the inaugural cohort of Plutus Pioneers and received recognition for building community tools at Adafolio (<https://adafolio.com/portfolio/8f7da192-0257-11eb-9684-a45e60be653b>).

Stake Pool Operation:

He is an integral part of a team operating the Cardano Stake Pool with the ticker DSIO, registered in 2020. The pool has received multiple delegations from the Cardano Foundation in acknowledgment of outstanding contributions to the community.

• Pool Details

Community Engagement:

Dmitry actively participates in the Cardano forum and Cardano Stack Exchange, contributing to community discussions and sharing knowledge.

• Cardano Forum
• Cardano Stack Exchange

Project Delivery and Recognition:

100% success rate in delivering on previously funded Catalyst proposal. The team has successfully delivered 3 out of 3 of their previously funded Catalyst projects. Dynamic Strategies was selected for the Midnight Dev Net and has a track record of delivering solutions in risk management and AI for the traditional banking sector (e.g. https://riskview.app).

What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Activities:

Set up the NextJS skeleton

• Create a front-end with a sample product page for users to purchase goods
• Create a back-end that will receive and process payment confirmation from the payment processor
• Docker-compose yaml files to run cardan-node, cardano-db-sync, cardano-graphql and cardano-wallet on the server

Create back-end services:

• A MongoDB database that keeps the status of product through out its life. Starting with payment initiated, to payment received, to token sent and finally, token received in the user wallet
• A back-end service that monitors the EVM chain index for transactions and confirms that payment has been received. This is in addition to the back-end service in NextJs to double-check payment confirmations and reduce the risk of fraud.
• A back-end service that sends tokens and NFTs from the central wallet to the client

Expected time to completion: 2 months

Resources:

• One Senior developer 80h per week for 8 weeks
• One Junior developer 80h per week for 8 weeks

Deliverables:

• A working front-end in NextJs framework with a sample product and a button to purchase and pay with a Credit Card. When a user clicks that button a new window should appear from the payment processor where the user needs to complete KYC. At the first milestone only the window needs to pop up, the connection to the payment processor and KYC will be done in milestone 3
• A backend service as a NodeJS daemon running in a separate docker container that monitors the status of payments and update the MongoDB database when payment has been sent to the EVM smart contract
• A docker-compose set-up file that the user can use to launch the cardan-node, cardano-db-sync, cardano-graphql and cardano-wallet and MongoDB
• A backend service as a NodeJS daemon that creates transactions and sends tokens and NFTs from the central wallet to the clients. It will use the cardano-wallet service to send these.

Outputs:

Code in a dedicated and open-source github repo

Intended Outcomes:

Developers should be able to clone the repo and launch the front end and back end service

>Activities:

• Create a smart contract template that links to the policy id of assets on Cardano and into where the payment processor will transfer the payments
• Guide how to launch and the smart contract on an EVM chain using Remix, how to monitor its balance and withdraw from the smart contract into the developer’s wallet

Expected time to completion: 1 month

Resources:

• One Senior developer 80h per week for 4 weeks
• One Junior developer 80h per week for 4 weeks

Deliverables:

• A template smart contract that references the asset on the Cardano blockchain. When the payment processor sends the payment to this smart contract on an EVM chain the smart contract mints a temporary token on the EVM chain and this gives a queue to send the user the token on the Cardano chain

Outputs:

A manual with code example showing how to launch the smart contract on an EVM chain using Remixn and perform operations to retrieve funds from the smart contract

Intended Outcomes:

Developers can set up smart contracts on an EVM chain that reference Cardano assets

>Activities:

Set up the payment processor

• User guide on how to set-up crypto keys
• Configure the keys in the front end and back end
• Register the EVM smart contract OBI with the payment processor
• FAQ on the commercial arrangement

Refine and Fix bugs

• Test the repo with a Cardano developer and record feedback and bugs
• Address bugs and improved UX/UI where needed
• Recommendations for alternative set-ups with blockfrost and Koios instead of running own cardano node and wallet services
• Release the repo to the community

Expected time to completion: 2 months

Resources:

• One Senior developer 80h per week for 8 weeks
• One Junior developer 80h per week for 8 weeks

Deliverables:

• A guide on how to onboard onto a payment processor. In the guide, we will mention a payment processor with which the team at Dynamic Strategies has had good success and the contacts to reach them
• The guide will include how to set up the crypto keys and how to update the front and the back end - this ensures that only a particular backend can initiate payments. Then how the EVM smart contract needs to be registered with the payment processor to ensure that payments are only sent to the authorized smart contract

Outputs:

Documentation in the github repo on how to onboard onto a payment processor and connect it to the front-end, back-end and smart contracts.

Intended Outcomes:

Developers understand how to connect the payment processor to the infrastructure built in this proposal.

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Project Lead: Dmitry Shibaev

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shibaev/

Junior Dev: Vlad Mikirtumov

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/vmikirtumov/>

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

Milestone 1: Front-end NextJs and Backe-end services

• One Senior Developer 20h per week for 8 weeks @ $60/h
• One Junior Developer 20h per week for 8 weeks @ $30h

Total $14,400

Milestone 3: Smart Contracts

• One Senior Developer 20h per week for 4 weeks @ $60/h
• One Junior Developer 20h per week for 4 weeks @ $30h

Total $7,200

Milestone : Payment Processor Connector

• One Senior Developer 20h per week for 8 weeks @ $60/h
• One Junior Developer 20h per week for 8 weeks @ $30h

Total $14,400

The total budget is 36,000 USD

At a price of 0.35 ADA per USD

Total in ADA: 102,857

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The project aims to bring new businesses and users to Cardano by offering a unique feature. Developers, artists, and business owners who opt for Cardano as their platform will have the capability to accept credit card payments from their clients—a feature currently limited on Cardano. This enhancement simplifies the onboarding process for individuals unfamiliar with crypto and Cardano, expanding the potential customer base significantly.