ZK FINANCE - MARCH 2025

ZK Finance

Company

ZK Finance

My Role

Product Designer

Timeline

1 month (72 hours for Research)

Responsabilities

Research

Interaction Design

Visual Design

Prototyping

Live Preview

Live Preview

Live Preview

Overview

In 2025, during a competitive blockchain hackathon, our team tackled one of Brazil's most pressing financial challenges: over 20 million microentrepreneurs lacking access to fair credit.

Working collaboratively with blockchain developers and business strategists, I was assigned to conceptualize a complete decentralized microcredit platform that would revolutionize how underbanked populations access capital while ensuring privacy and transparency through cutting-edge technology.

The platform had to be technically innovative, user-friendly, and scalable, allowing it to grow into a sustainable fintech solution that could compete with traditional banking institutions.

Spoiler Alert!

We won 2nd place in the hackathon and are now developing the full product, highlighting the importance of user-centered design and technical innovation in creating impactful financial solutions.

High Level Goals

Democratize access to productive capital for Brazilian microentrepreneurs while providing investors a transparent, secure way to fund small businesses with attractive returns.

01

Revolutionize credit assessment using Zero-Knowledge Proofs and 3D asset tokenization to create fair, privacy-preserving evaluation methods that focus on business potential rather than traditional banking history.

02

Questions from Discovery Workshops

In early discovery workshops I facilitated, some outstanding questions emerged from the team:

1

How could we create a credit system that's both technologically advanced and accessible to low-tech users?

1

How could we create a credit system that's both technologically advanced and accessible to low-tech users?

1

How could we create a credit system that's both technologically advanced and accessible to low-tech users?

2

How can we build trust with users who have been historically excluded from traditional banking?

2

How can we build trust with users who have been historically excluded from traditional banking?

2

How can we build trust with users who have been historically excluded from traditional banking?

3

Is a fully decentralized microcredit platform technically and commercially feasible?

3

Is a fully decentralized microcredit platform technically and commercially feasible?

3

Is a fully decentralized microcredit platform technically and commercially feasible?

Consumer Research & Competitive Study

To better understand these questions, we conducted extensive research on Brazilian microentrepreneurs' pain points. We discovered that 63% lack access to formal credit, with average approval times of 22 days requiring 17 documents.

By analyzing existing fintech solutions and DeFi platforms, we identified a gap: no solution combined privacy-preserving technology with intuitive UX specifically designed for underbanked populations.

Feedback from Target Users

Talking to microentrepreneurs was crucial. We found that trust and simplicity were paramount - they wanted transparent conditions, fast approvals, and fair evaluation methods. They also expressed frustration with complex financial products that weren't designed for their reality.

Branding Choices & Design

I chose a modern, trustworthy visual identity with clean typography and a professional color palette that would inspire confidence in both borrowers and investors. The logo represents connection and growth, while our design system balances technical sophistication with accessibility.

After collecting data and considering stakeholder strategies, I designed the complete ZK Finance ecosystem: a mobile-first borrower app, investor dashboard, and comprehensive website showcasing our innovative approach.

The Consumer Experience

DEMOCRATIZING ACCESS TO CAPITAL

For borrowers, I created a revolutionary 10-minute onboarding flow with facial recognition, holistic business assessment, and 3D smartphone scanning for collateral tokenization. The app features a complete credit journey tracking system and financial education modules tailored to their business sector.

  • Digital-First Onboarding

    After registration, users complete identity verification through facial recognition and provide essential business information in a simplified, step-by-step process.

    Holistic Credit Assessment

    Our proprietary ZK Credit Score™ evaluates business potential, market viability, and technical capacity rather than just traditional credit history.

    3D Asset Tokenization

    Users can tokenize physical collateral (equipment, machinery, vehicles) using smartphone scanning, creating transparent, immutable asset records.

    Smart Matchmaking

    Algorithm connects borrowers with suitable investors based on risk profiles and investment preferences, ensuring personalized interest rates.

  • Digital-First Onboarding

    After registration, users complete identity verification through facial recognition and provide essential business information in a simplified, step-by-step process.

    Holistic Credit Assessment

    Our proprietary ZK Credit Score™ evaluates business potential, market viability, and technical capacity rather than just traditional credit history.

    3D Asset Tokenization

    Users can tokenize physical collateral (equipment, machinery, vehicles) using smartphone scanning, creating transparent, immutable asset records.

    Smart Matchmaking

    Algorithm connects borrowers with suitable investors based on risk profiles and investment preferences, ensuring personalized interest rates.

Empowering Investors with Transparency

Investors access a sophisticated web dashboard where they can analyze opportunities, diversify portfolios automatically, and track performance in real-time. The platform provides comprehensive risk analytics, ESG impact metrics, and USDT-based returns.

Felix Rodrigues

AI Strategist

Felix Rodrigues

AI Strategist

Felix Rodrigues

AI Strategist

Felipe Segall

Dev. Product Manager

Felipe Segall

Dev. Product Manager

Felipe Segall

Dev. Product Manager

Paulo Marinato

Defi Sales

Paulo Marinato

Defi Sales

Paulo Marinato

Defi Sales

Laura Eckert

UI/UX Designer

Laura Eckert

UI/UX Designer

Laura Eckert

UI/UX Designer

The Outcome

During our 72-hour hackathon sprint, we successfully created a complete product vision, technical architecture, and high-fidelity prototypes that impressed judges and fellow participants.

Our user-centered approach and innovative technology integration earned us 2nd place among dozens of competing teams. We're now in active development of the full platform, with plans for MVP launch in Q2 2024.

The project demonstrated that complex blockchain technology can be made accessible through thoughtful UX design, opening new possibilities for financial inclusion in emerging markets.

Key Learnings

My journey through this project provided several key insights

Functional design requires constant collaboration

I learned that alignment with developers isn’t a one-off checkpoint — it’s a continuous process. In high-pressure sprints, every design decision must be validated in real time to ensure feasibility, clarity, and impact.

Functional design requires constant collaboration

I learned that alignment with developers isn’t a one-off checkpoint — it’s a continuous process. In high-pressure sprints, every design decision must be validated in real time to ensure feasibility, clarity, and impact.

Functional design requires constant collaboration

I learned that alignment with developers isn’t a one-off checkpoint — it’s a continuous process. In high-pressure sprints, every design decision must be validated in real time to ensure feasibility, clarity, and impact.

Strategic thinking beats perfect research

With only 3 days, there was no room for long-form research. I focused on extracting maximum insight from limited user conversations, benchmarking, and contextual understanding. Strategic constraints became creative fuel — each decision solved a real problem, not a theoretical one.

Strategic thinking beats perfect research

With only 3 days, there was no room for long-form research. I focused on extracting maximum insight from limited user conversations, benchmarking, and contextual understanding. Strategic constraints became creative fuel — each decision solved a real problem, not a theoretical one.

Strategic thinking beats perfect research

With only 3 days, there was no room for long-form research. I focused on extracting maximum insight from limited user conversations, benchmarking, and contextual understanding. Strategic constraints became creative fuel — each decision solved a real problem, not a theoretical one.

Good UX shapes outcomes beyond the screen

Working in a cross-functional team taught me that UX isn’t just how it looks — it’s how it works, how it earns trust, and how it delivers business results. User flows ended up influencing product logic, investor confidence, and even how creditworthiness was defined.

Good UX shapes outcomes beyond the screen

Working in a cross-functional team taught me that UX isn’t just how it looks — it’s how it works, how it earns trust, and how it delivers business results. User flows ended up influencing product logic, investor confidence, and even how creditworthiness was defined.

Good UX shapes outcomes beyond the screen

Working in a cross-functional team taught me that UX isn’t just how it looks — it’s how it works, how it earns trust, and how it delivers business results. User flows ended up influencing product logic, investor confidence, and even how creditworthiness was defined.

Fast doesn’t mean shallow — it means focused

Designing under time pressure taught me to prioritize what truly matters. I learned to remove noise, communicate clearly with stakeholders, and build only what moved the product forward. Agility doesn’t come from rushing — it comes from knowing exactly where to go

Fast doesn’t mean shallow — it means focused

Designing under time pressure taught me to prioritize what truly matters. I learned to remove noise, communicate clearly with stakeholders, and build only what moved the product forward. Agility doesn’t come from rushing — it comes from knowing exactly where to go

Fast doesn’t mean shallow — it means focused

Designing under time pressure taught me to prioritize what truly matters. I learned to remove noise, communicate clearly with stakeholders, and build only what moved the product forward. Agility doesn’t come from rushing — it comes from knowing exactly where to go

Made with ♥ by Laura Eckert ©2025

BASED IN BRAZIL

Made with ♥ by Laura Eckert ©2025

BASED IN BRAZIL

Made with ♥ by Laura Eckert ©2025

BASED IN BRAZIL