Open Money Initiative

The Open Money Initiative aims to research how individuals navigate financial systems within closed or collapsing economies. It advocates for access to a free and open financial system as a human right, with a focus on Venezuela. The initiative seeks to understand human experiences often obscured by macroeconomic data through field research and design-led processes.

The Open Money Initiative utilizes ethnographic interviews and longitudinal studies to gather qualitative insights. By going into the field, the initiative captures personal and widespread economic experiences, particularly in environments like Venezuela where financial fluidity and security are challenged by hyperinflation and restrictive government policies. This hands-on approach ensures an authentic understanding of the financial difficulties faced by citizens.

The Open Money Initiative provides valuable insights into how people manage financial systems under duress, such as those in Venezuela facing hyperinflation and currency restrictions. By sharing these findings publicly, the initiative educates broader audiences on the impact of economic adversity and helps inspire innovative solutions and services with its partners.

Unlike many financial research organizations that focus on macroeconomic data, the Open Money Initiative places emphasis on human-centric qualitative research. Through ethnography and personal engagement in closed economies, it highlights the day-to-day challenges individuals face, setting it apart from traditional data-driven research firms in providing deeper, context-rich insights.

Venezuela is a focal point for the Open Money Initiative due to its extreme economic conditions, such as hyperinflation and strict currency controls that limit financial transactions and personal economic freedom. These circumstances provide a unique opportunity to study the effects of dysfunctional monetary systems and develop applicable insights for creating more accessible financial systems globally.

The Open Money Initiative addresses critical challenges such as the inability to access international money exchanges, restrictions on merchants' pricing, and the impacts of hyperinflation. By understanding and documenting these challenges through first-hand research, the initiative aims to advocate for changes that promote more open and accessible financial systems worldwide.