RealFi Hack

Building the infrastructure
for everyday use, everywhere.

September 23 - October 16, 2025

RealFi = Real-World Finance Infrastructure

Crypto's most impactful tools start with real-world problems

Sending money, building trust, unlocking access.

RealFi is about building in that same spirit

Grounded, usable, and ready for the world. Join us from anywhere.

3 weeks of prototyping real-world solutions

RealFi Hack is a virtual hackathon focused on creating practical infrastructure for public goods funding, financial access, privacy, identity, and coordination. Build systems that serve people directly—whether by filling gaps, extending reach, or opening new possibilities.

You might build shared wallets, programmable subsidies, cross-border payments, portable trust layers, AI tools designed for public use, and much more. The focus is on collective needs and real-world use, not theoretical designs.

Bring a problem worth solving

Use the tools that fit—Web3, AI, or anything else that helps you move from idea to implementation. You'll be building alongside others who care about open source, interoperability, and long-term value.

RealFi Hack Tracks

Funding Systems

Transparent, flexible ways to allocate shared resources.

Financial Access:

Savings, payments, and money tools for people outside traditional rails.

Coordination Infrastructure:

Tools for groups to act, govern, and respond—online or off.

Identity & Trust:

Privacy-first systems for verification, reputation, and credentials.

AI for Public Use:

Auditable, small-scale models that serve real community needs.

Climate and Commons Governance:

Bioregional governance and climate-aligned infrastructure.

RealFi Hack tracks

What to expect as a builder

You’ll join a remote cohort of developers, designers, and researchers all building toward one goal: deployable infrastructure. To get there, we’ve designed the hackathon to be structured but flexible, with just enough scaffolding to help you ship.

Teams of 1–5 builders

Join solo or with a small team. If you're coming in alone, no problem—many people are. You’ll have chances to connect with others before and during the hack if you want to team up.

Weekly office hours with experienced builders

Talk through your challenges, get unstuck, or pressure-test an idea. You'll have access to people who've built core infrastructure, launched projects, and navigated the edge cases.

Hands-on workshops from supporting organizations

Expect sessions on technical tools, design principles, real-world use cases, and emerging coordination patterns—from people building in the open and learning as they go.

Midpoint check-in to share progress and get feedback

Halfway through the hack, we’ll bring everyone together to share early demos, ask for help, and exchange ideas. It's a moment to recalibrate, connect, and build momentum heading into the final stretch.

All coordination through DevSpot

DevSpot is going to be our home base. It’s where you’ll share updates, ask questions, post deliverables, and stay in sync with mentors, teammates, and the rest of the hack community.

What to expect as a builder

You’ll join a remote cohort of developers, designers, and researchers all building toward one goal: deployable infrastructure. To get there, we’ve designed the hackathon to be structured but flexible, with just enough scaffolding to help you ship.

Teams of 1–5 builders

Join solo or with a small team. If you're coming in alone, no problem—many people are. You’ll have chances to connect with others before and during the hack if you want to team up.

Weekly office hours with experienced builders

Talk through your challenges, get unstuck, or pressure-test an idea. You'll have access to people who've built core infrastructure, launched projects, and navigated the edge cases.

Hands-on workshops from supporting organizations

Expect sessions on technical tools, design principles, real-world use cases, and emerging coordination patterns—from people building in the open and learning as they go.

Midpoint check-in to share progress and get feedback:

All coordination through DevSpot:

DevSpot is going to be our home base. It’s where you’ll share updates, ask questions, post deliverables, and stay in sync with mentors, teammates, and the rest of the hack community.

$50k+
in prizes

Residency invites for selected winners

FtC Residency (Oct 24-Nov 14) invitations will go to selected teams to join us in Buenos Aires this fall.

Opportunity to present to 500+ people at FtC Buenos Aires Conference

(Nov 19) during DevConnect week

Your Mentors

Funding the Commons

James Farrell

James Farrell is the CTO of Funding the Commons, where he leads product and program strategy to grow a global builder community around public goods. He has curated hackathons, residencies, and research collaborations that bring together leading cryptographers, developers, and economists to advance privacy-preserving governance, decentralized funding mechanisms, and impact evaluation. At the intersection of Web3, open-source, and public goods, James is focused on designing systems that make collective coordination scalable and sustainable.

YAP Global

Debra Nita

Debra professional photo 2025 (1)_edited.png

Describe the team member here. Write a brief description of their role and responsibilities, or a short bio with a background summary.

growthepie

Tobias Schreier

Tobias is the co-founder of growthepie, focused on providing transparency in the Ethereum ecosystem. He focuses on designing and delivering products, making sure the underlying problem is tackled from a user perspective, and not solely from the technological angle. He’s been active in the Ethereum ecosystem since 2017.

NEAR - Proximity

Owen Hassall

Lead DevRel at Proximity, a research and development wing for the NEAR ecosystem, focused on autonomous decentralized agents and chain abstraction. I've been working as a DevRel in NEAR for 2 years, writing docs, creating examples, tooling, and helping builders! I attempted my own startup a few months ago, which failed, so I know how difficult it is to be a builder and want to help others succeed.

NEAR One

Iker Alustiza

A senior web3 engineer who has been traversing the seas of the industry for more than 7 years always, always from a technical standpoint (protocol engineer, spec engineer, tech integration lead, project advisor, etc). At the moment, I take care of the infrastructure in the NEAR ecosystem making sure that each vertical is well-maintained and with a future-proof vision.

Venture Miner

Matheus Pagani

Co-Founder and CEO of Venture Miner | AI and Web3 Teacher

Near Foundation

Shai Perednik

DWeb Network

Ira Nezhynska

Ira is a designer in open-source and decentralized tech who helps founders accelerate their product adoption and funding through storytelling and visual experiences. After years of working for fintech giants like Deutsche Bank, ING Bank, Wirecard and DNB Bank, she joined Web3 in early 2018 and has since served as a Creative Director at companies big and small: Jolocom (decentralized identity), Ultimate (AI), Protocol Labs (IPFS, libp2p and many other projects) and DWeb Camp. These days, she runs her own design practice, gives talks and workshops and organizes design+marketing educational spaces at Web3 events — Adoption Hub at Devcon SEA, Design Tracks at DWeb Camps and Product Track at IPFS Camp. Two months ago, she started the brand design repository, where she teaches developers-turned-founders how to bootstrap their brands: https://www.embracevariety.com/

Waku / Codex / Logos