Tiktokens for All

Tiktokens
Architecture

Group Name: lookingfor2025internships

Inspiration

In many communities, traditional banking services are either inaccessible or inconvenient, leading to unbanked and underbanked communities. We were inspired by the need to create a more inclusive financial system that caters to their plight. Envisioning a digital solution that integrates seamlessly with everyday life, we leverage local shops as banking hubs to provide modern methods for transferring money and ensure that everyone can participate in the digital economy.

What it does

Tiktokens is a digital banking platform integrated with Tiktok Shop that allows users to top up and deposit funds at neighborhood stores, making banking services accessible to everyone. Users can also transfer money to friends through various methods such as usernames, QR codes, and NFC technology. With a disposable virtual card, users can even make online payments without the need to register for a credit card. This approach simplifies the process of managing and transferring money, ensuring financial services are available to all.

How we built it

For our demonstration, we used Flask for the backend, providing a robust and scalable foundation for handling transactions and user data. For the frontend, we used React to create an intuitive and responsive user interface.

For production, we will adopt a microservice architecture. Leveraging upon AWS, we plan to utilise Amazon Relational Database Service with synchronous replication, Amazon Simple Queue Service for exactly-once semantics, and AWS WAF and CloudFront for security and global performance. Our EC2 instances are managed behind an Application Load Balancer for auto-scaling and high availability and our serverless components like AWS Lambda functions handle transactions and history while being integrated with RDS and ElastiCache for fast, reliable service.

Challenges we ran into

One of the main challenges we faced was ensuring the security of transactions while maintaining ease of use. Additionally, developing a user-friendly interface that caters to a diverse user base required extensive testing and iteration.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud to have created a platform that significantly lowers the barrier to accessing banking services. Our integration with local shops is a unique feature that brings banking to the community level. Successfully implementing secure and diverse money transfer methods was another significant achievement. Overall, we are proud to have built a solution that has the potential to make a real difference in the lives of the underbanked.

What we learned

Throughout the development process, we learned the importance of user feedback and community involvement. Engaging with our target audience helped us understand their needs and preferences, allowing us to tailor our solution accordingly. We also gained valuable insights into the technical and logistical challenges of integrating with existing retail systems and ensuring robust security measures.

What's next for Tiktokens for All

Our next steps include expanding our network of partnered local shops to increase accessibility. We plan to introduce additional features such as micro-loans and savings programs to further support the financial growth of our users. Continuous improvement of our platform based on user feedback will remain a priority. Our goal is to continue improving our platform to serve the needs of unbanked and underbanked populations globally, ensuring they have access to secure, convenient, and inclusive financial solutions.