pWhitepaperRequest NetworkThe future of commerceA decentralized network for payment requestsJanuary 22, 2018Contents1 cutive summary 22 The plat 23 The ecosystem 73.1 The Core layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73.2 The Extensions layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83.3 The Applications layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Use cases 94.1 B2B invoicing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94.2 Online payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104.3 Automation of jobs Accounting, Audit, Expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114.3.1 Accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114.3.2 Audit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124.3.3 Expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144.4 Business Logic and Trade Laws Government and Tax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144.5 Simpli cation of commercial tools Factoring, Escrow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144.6 Transparency of institutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144.7 IoT and smart contracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Token 155.1 Incentive for a secure ecosystem of applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155.2 Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165.3 Independence of other currencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165.4 Technical independence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165.5 Make cross currency exchanges easier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 Roadmap draft 167 Team 177.1 Core team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 Architecture 198.1 Technical considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208.2 Smart contract architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2119 Thanks 2210 Bibliography 231 cutive summaryRequest is a decentralized1 network that allows anyone to request a payment a Request Invoicefor which therecipient can pay in a secure way. All of the ination is stored in a decentralized authentic ledger. Thisresults in cheaper, easier, and more secure payments, and it allows for a wide range of automation possibilities.To become the backbone of world trade, Request integrates a general ledger in the accounting sense ofthe term, which is- Universal because it is designed to support 100 of global transactions, regardless of currency, legislationor language. Request is built to last.- Smart because unlike an existing standard accounting book, Request is at the origin of the exchanges andintegrates a computerized trade code, as well as the management of a multitude of payment terms.Today, their absence makes the whole system ine cient and absolutely unready for the digital and IoTInternet Of Things revolution that is taking place.Request can be seen as a layer on top of Ethereum2, which allows requests for payments that satisfy alegal framework.It is also possible to see currencies as tools to complete Request transactions. In this sense,Request is more global than any currency.2 The platAnyone can write on the Request Ledger and create a Request for Payment. The Request can be detected bythe recipient monitoring the network via a wallet or via a nbsp;nancial application. If the request is approvedby the user, it can be paid with a single click. Then the request is completed and the network is updated.When a Request is created, the trade laws that are applicable to its speci c case are taken into account,and taxes are applied. When necessary, advanced payment terms may be selected.1http// 2014, Gavin Wood. Ethereum a secure decentralised generalised transaction ledger2https// is requesting a payment from AliceLets look at 2 examplesBob asks Alice for a payment, then he creates an invoice request and relays it to the blockchain; Alice’swallet detects the Request and processes the payment.In the case where Bob was on Amazon and Alice was making a purchase, Amazon creates a Request on theblockchain, Alices phone analyzes the blockchain and detects the request, sends a noti cation, and she agreesto pay.Request o ersSecurity, since it is not necessary to share banking inationSimplicity, since it requires only to click a buttonSavings, since purchases dont require a third party eg. Paypal3A representation of what the General Ledger looks likeConsider a second scenario, in which an autonomous car connects to a smart garage contract to buy anew wheel. They negotiate by algorithm, and agree upon a payment with deposit and escrow money blockeduntil delivery. To interact nbsp;nancially, the machines and IoT require a payment framework.These examples are not feasible today, as there is no standard at and no interconnection between theservices; it is necessary either to share banking ination, or to use a third party that is common to bothentities Paypal, Venmo, Lydia , Stripe .... Besides being limited and unsafe, it results in scattered invoicesthat could contain errors.The blockchain is the perfect support to create an open source, durable, smart and immutable system.4These new foundations simplify electronic nbsp;ows.Today, this is incredibly important because everything comes down to payment. More than 5 trillion isexchanged every day3 on the SWIFT network alone, however, the nbsp;ows are poorly optimized.This solution has even greater advantages. A ledger containing all standardized accounting entries canautomate real-time accounting, improve auditing, automate factoring, simplify expense reporting, make es-crow simple and reliable, and detect and automatically pay taxes.3https//www.fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/Appendix_D.pdf5Moreover, it opens up opportunities for more comprehensive trade improvement.Being able to manage data privacy makes it possible to push trade towards more transparency publicexpenditure, associations, more fairness transparency makes it possible to follow the distribution of gainsand the origin of products; it also enhances fair-trade and more justice trade rules will be more easilyaligned and enforced.It is di cult to imagine that the nbsp;nancial world can make any advancements without this layer.63 The ecosystemMany developments will be possible on top of Request once the Core protocol is nbsp;nished by the team.Our Tech mind map4 gives a full picture of the Request Network and the upcoming roadmap.We believe the Request ecosystem is the key to success, and we very much would like to nurture it. Inorder to drive this decentralization forward and help Request to scale, here is an introduction to the RequestHub5. What we call Request Hub is the community outside the Request foundation that is willing to workon top of Request, create teams and projects around Request, and help with its decentralization.3.1 The Core layerThe bottom layer is the Core, which manages the consensus over the ledger and the states transitions. Itconsists of the most fundamental smart contracts, allowing the creation of di erent entities and requests forpayments. It also detects when payments have been completed. It is based on immutability ie. no onecan change the ination, the openness of its system everyone can access ination that concernsthem and an intelligence that allows it to know when an invoice is paid according to the rules in the invoice.This layer takes place on the Ethereum blockchain, which brings endogenous bene ts for Ethereum andERC20-labeled invoices, such as automatic detection. Other currencies are also covered via automatic pay-ment detection through the use of Oracles.This layer is free to encourage the greatest number to use it and to discourage the development of othersystems. The only costs transmitted are the use of Ethereum gas and the storage of ination.4https// The Extensions layerThe second layer is the Extensions layer. Most payment requests created today are not as basic as the oneproposed by the Core layer. If the request comes from an enterprise, then it includes rules for calculatingtaxes, payment terms, escrows or advances. All of these conditions take the of available extensionsthat can be added to requests. This layer is the gateway to incredible features that do not yet exist, suchas quot;continuous billsquot;. For example, someone could choose this module to break down their rent into30 x24 payments to the landlord, leaving this person with a nbsp;uid bank account without large end-of-monthexpenses. Taxes would be rerouted in real time to government agencies. With each payment, 20 of VATwould go to taxes and 80 to the recipient company. The same example would allow everyone to give 1 of allpayments to NGOs Non Governmental Organizations, or to deposit them into ones own retirement account.This layer is chargeable, in that each extension will take a fee that will be partially burned and partiallytransferred to the extension developers, with the extensions accrued on the same invoice. Costs decrease overtime to remain competitive and discourage alternative systems. The costs of these extensions is estimated tobe between 0.1 and 0.5 initially, though as the system grows, the costs will be reduced. More than 5,000billion dollars in payments are made each day, and in the end it will be enough to nbsp;nance the network by lessthan 0.1. Nonetheless, the costs will continue to support the security of applications and their development.This layer is completely open, whereupon anyone can create their own extensions, with the fees also beingdistributed in a way that will interest and encourage the developer and the community.3.3 The Applications layerThe topmost layer is the Applications layer, which takes place outside the blockchain. Systems from di erentcompanies can connect to Request to create requests or access ination. Accounting, audit, tax, debt re-8covery and collection, factoring or payment systems can all be connected. When a payment system connectsto Request Mycellium, Coinbase, Bank of America, Bankin ..., it will be able to access the invoices of theuser and propose to pay them instantly.The Request team will develop applications, including an interface and an API for creating and accessingrequests.Reputation ApplicationA reputation system is included in this layer to guard against phishing or bad payers. For instance, a userwill be able to detect whether a company is attempting phishing, in the case that other users have previouslyrejected its payments. Conversely, a company that does not pay its invoices on time, after having acceptedthem, will also be penalized by means of its reputation. The reputation system may also have other uses; forexample, members of the network with the best reputation will be able to receive cost reductions or accessto custom extensions.The reputation could be directly entered in the blockchain, but to keep the system light, we have chosento keep them in the application layer thus far, since this ination can be re-obtained by browsing theblockchain.4 Use casesThe use cases of this technology are extremely wide. This system automates real-time global accounting,replaces an entire branch of the audit, eliminates manual tax collection, simpli es international payments,allows machines to communicate on the same nbsp;nancial nbsp;eld, replaces payment systems such as Paypal,and makes the most advanced payment terms available to everyone.4.1 B2B invoicingBillions of invoices are shared each year between companies, with most of them still being sent in paper andemail at, which have to be copied. This results in a large number of errors, particularly when advancedpayment or tax rules are applied.With Request, companies can share these bills directly via the ledger; there will be no more duplication,as accounting systems will be immediately plugged in and updated.The company awaiting payment will be able to detect a delay immediately, which will happen less oftendue to the development of invoice payment systems. The company has the ability to pay on the optimal dateat the time of receiving the request.Each year, thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises SMEs bankrupt while waiting for theirinvoices to be paid. The ECB European Central Bank, in particular, is setting up solutions that Requestcomplete by adding a payment reputation system and key indicators. Today, a provider still has to trust itsclient and might not be paid. Tomorrow, the provider will be able to verify the payers clients reputation andother indicators, such as DPO Days Payable Outstanding before agreeing on a contract.94.2 Online paymentsFor example, shopping on Amazon requires payment by credit/debit card, thereby exposing sensitive infor-mation. Alternatively, selecting the option to pay via Request, the users data remain protected. Amazonwill post a Request on the network, the user’s account will detect it and request a con rmation of paymentfrom the user. This will trigger a transfer at the lowest cost, without exposing the payment ination.It becomes possible to avoid unforeseen credit/debit card payments that services charge in a hidden way,because it provides a way to validate payments before they happen. Request empowers people.The advantages of Request, compared to current systems, areSecurity Payment ination is never shared, there is no risk that someone intercepts and reusesbanking ination.Simplicity One click to pay, and no manual error possible.10 Cost No third-party like Paypal6, Bitpay7 or Stripe8, all of whom are providers that charge between1 and 7 of the amounts sent. Request reduces the cost.4.3 Automation of jobs Accounting, Audit, Expenses4.3.1 AccountingWith Request, the accounting is done automatically and in real time. Beyond cost reduction, this allows forbetter, faster nbsp;nancial management, and with more ination.Use cases for accounting purposesRequest brings simultaneity to the accounting process. Payments, accounting, and VAT refunds /payments are done automatically.6https// addi/p