Significant RIF and Rootstock Developments Were Unveiled on Stage at Consensus 2023

Tim Paymans, VP of Product at IOV Labs, made a number of significant announcements at this year’s Consensus event that promote the expansion of the Rootstock ecosystem and update the open-source Rootstock Infrastructure Framework (RIF) with a more focused approach.

Two significant RIF developments were disclosed during the discussion:

Five complimentary Product Development Workshops are available to companies who want to create and market cutting-edge finance solutions using blockchain technology and the RIF protocols. Partners chosen for the program will have access to Rootstock developers, product specialists, funding, and marketing assistance.

RIF has a new visual identity that better reflects its mission to hasten the creation of practical, inexpensive, and scalable blockchain-based finance products and services.

On top of the Rootstock sidechain, it is simple to create accessible and user-friendly financial services thanks to the RIF open-source collection of tools, technologies, and protocols. 

RIF was created to assist programmers and financial pioneers in resolving actual, day-to-day problems for users. The collection of open-source technologies serves as the foundation for developing programs that enable safe, straightforward, and inexpensive ways to transmit, store, and borrow money.

In his presentation at Consensus 2023, Tim Paymans detailed the motivation for IOV Labs’ creation of RIF and how the company intended to help the development of the decentralized protocols going forward:

“Our vision at IOVLabs is a safe and equitable global financial system that enables everyone to participate and prosper. We believe the best way to make this vision a reality is by putting the tools, technology, and resources directly in the hands of the builders, founders, and financial organizations on the front line of the future of finance.

Tim Paymans also disclosed that IOVLabs would begin a $2.5 million grant program for companies and developers to create DeFi apps on top of Rootstock, the most secure, permissionless, and censorship-resistant Bitcoin sidechain in the world. This news was in addition to the RIF advancements. IOVLabs wants to help entrepreneurs and founders construct their financial futures by providing 100 grants this year. The start of the program is scheduled for the next weeks.

Pei Chen, VP of Growth at IOVLabs, remarked on the news:

“IOVLabs’ investment in the Rootstock strategic grants program reflects our commitment to supporting the development of a decentralized financial ecosystem through community effort.”

“Over 1 billion people lack access to financial services worldwide. RIF aims to change this by reducing the complexity of decentralized finance and making it accessible to all.”

Businesses, entrepreneurs, and developers may utilize the open-source RIF suite to develop new services or incorporate cryptocurrency into already-existing products. They can also express an interest in working with RIF to jointly develop a product.

The purpose of IOVLabs is to provide the groundwork for financial inclusion.  As part of its mission to create a secure and fair global financial system that allows everyone to participate and succeed, part of this endeavor involves promoting the development of decentralized protocols like Rootstock and RIF.