A New Infrastructure for Trust-Based Trade
As centralized systems falter, FOAF helps communities exchange value directly. No banks. No middlemen. No cash required.
What Is FOAF?
FOAF (Friend of a Friend) is a decentralized protocol for value exchange rooted in trust. It is not a marketplace or an app—it is the infrastructure that powers them. FOAF enables people to trade goods, services, and credit through personal networks, using social trust instead of money.
How FOAF Works
- Post something you offer or need
- It spreads through your contact network
- Credit flows across trust paths, and the app keeps track
No public listings. No wallet setup. Most users never touch tokens. FOAF works quietly in the background, making trusted trade possible.
Why Now?
- Rising costs and economic instability are pushing people to find alternatives
- Trust in institutions is eroding
- Volunteer-run exchange networks burn out and fade
- Communities need tools built for real-world resilience
Why It Matters
FOAF turns goodwill and social capital into a usable economic layer. It lets us grow, share, and trade directly—without depending on fragile supply chains or extractive systems.
Our Mission
To build an infrastructure of trust that empowers people to trade, thrive, and adapt—together.
Who It's For
- Gardeners, makers, fixers, and doers
- People who want to help their communities stay resilient
- Anyone looking for ways to trade fairly and build lasting connections
First Use Case: GrowOperative
GrowOperative is our first live deployment of the FOAF protocol. It helps gardeners and communities share surplus food through trust-based networks—no cash required.
This is just the beginning. FOAF can support any kind of trade—tools, skills, services, and more.
Core Principles
- Local-first: Built for neighborhoods and bioregions
- Consent-based visibility: Listings are visible only through direct or second-degree contacts
- Credible neutrality: FOAF is infrastructure, not a brand or marketplace
- Forward-compatible: Starts with food, expands to services, logistics, and credit
Get Started
Explore GrowOperative — our first live application
Learn about FOAF and RHEO tokens — governance and utility layers