Peter Bui Dey Build Cardano Escrow Infrastructure After Draper University

Bui dey build Hokan now through Moshi Concepts, using Cardano smart contracts to enforce payment conditions while users still hold control of their funds. The change no start with new technical capability. E come from to question how big the market be, how potential customers dey behave and why anybody go trust the product with real money.

From Cardano Developer to Startup Founder

Bui don spend several years inside the Cardano ecosystem. E create Learn Cardano, e dey run the ADAOZ stake pool and e develop CardanoPress, one WordPress integration wey allow projects connect websites with Cardano wallets and blockchain data.

That experience give am the technical foundation to build products, but the Genesis program introduce different question: whether one technically capable product fit reach market wey big enough to support scalable company?

CardanoPress connect two areas wey Bui don already sabi. Cardano NFT projects need websites wey fit interact with wallets and onchain data, while WordPress provide established infrastructure to build and manage those sites.

Market analysis wey dem do for Draper University divide that opportunity into smaller and smaller segments. Crypto na one part of the technology market. Cardano na one part of crypto. Cardano projects wey dey use WordPress form narrower category, and na only portion of those projects go need specialized blockchain integration and go willing to pay for am.

Narrow market still fit support sustainable business, but e potential depend on number of customers, the value of each relationship and the cost to reach them. Bui describe the resulting shift as moving from to ask wetin e fit build to to ask wetin worth to build.

The first Cardano Genesis preaccelerator bring together 13 publicly named teams. Participants develop their pitches, interview potential users and test business assumptions from the opening days of the program. Pitch week end with presentations to panel wey include Tim Draper and Cardano Foundation CFO Stephen Wood.

Bui arrive with concept for Web3 job and bounty platform. Customer go create task and lock funds inside smart contract. Contributor go complete the agreed work and receive payment after approval.

Instead make e spend months to build the entire marketplace, e begin interview freelancers and the people wey dey hire them. The conversations examine previous payment experiences, disputes, costs, existing workarounds and the conditions wey users take trust or reject current platforms.

Bui still create test bounties for Cardano test network. The objective pass to just confirm say smart contract fit lock and release funds. The tests explore where friction dey appear, who go become responsible when work no meet the agreed conditions and which parts of the process deliver value wey reach for customers to pay for them.

The same process change how e dey communicate the idea. During the final pitch preparations, Bui waka for the streets of San Mateo dey repeat e presentation, record approximately 17,000 steps for one day and 20,000 for another. When e finally present to Tim Draper, e include joke about to buy and sell one island, knowing say Draper dey sell one that time. The reference land with Draper even though plenty people for the room no catch am at first.

The more consequential exchange come during the questions. Draper ask whether escrow infrastructure alone fit become business wey strong reach. Bui answer say infrastructure without applications, users, distribution and revenue probably no go enough.

Customer interviews don already challenge the original product boundary. Bounty marketplace fit remain one application, but the escrow mechanism under am fit serve many other platforms.

Hokan Turns a Bounty Concept Into Cardano Escrow Infrastructure

Moshi Concepts dey present Hokan as noncustodial escrow infrastructure wey dem dey build first for Cardano. Instead make system take possession of customer money, e go place funds for smart contract address and release them according to previously defined conditions.

Hokan no design to hold private keys or to sign transactions for users. The system go prepare unsigned transaction, wey the user go approve through personal wallet. According to the published architecture, the contract no get administrative function wey allow Hokan redirect escrowed funds go arbitrary address.

Escrow fit involve depositor, receiver and separate dispute resolver. The resolver fit determine how funds go divide between the two people wey dem already identify before, but e no fit redirect the money to itself or to new address wey dem just introduce. Fallback paths wey base on time limits intend to prevent funds from to remain permanently locked when one participant become inactive.

The published model list support for ADA, USDM and USDCx. Hokan plan to charge protocol fee of 0.5 percent on released funds, capped at $1,000 per escrow. No protocol fee dey when escrow cancel or expire without releasing funds.

The product design be infrastructure wey other companies and applications fit integrate through API and developer tools. Moshi Concepts identify freelance work, marketplaces, digital services, milestone payments, international trade and dispute resolution among potential applications.

Bounty platform still remain part of the plan, but e now still serve as reference application wey dem build on the same public infrastructure wey dem intend for external developers. Moshi Concepts talk say their own application go use the same API without private endpoints or capabilities wey others no fit access.

That approach connect the infrastructure with product wey people fit use. E still give Moshi Concepts way to test whether escrow demand dey before dem expand the underlying platform across multiple industries.

Hokan planned scope extend reach transactions wey involve AI agents. Agent fit prepare escrow terms, calculate costs and assemble unsigned transaction, but e no go hold key or move the funds on e own. Final authorization go still remain with human wallet owner.

This one separate business process automation from control of the money. AI agent fit propose escrow for work wey go take several days, monitor the agreed conditions and prepare settlement, while person go decide whether to sign the resulting transaction.

Moshi Concepts don outline two ways to access the infrastructure. Companies fit use conventional subscription plans, while individual API calls fit dey paid through the x402 standard without creating user account. The second route na for software agents wey need buy access to specific function at the moment wey dem require am.

The broader product direction reflect another lesson wey Bui carry from the program. Users outside crypto more likely go evaluate whether payment reliable, predictable and recoverable than to select service because of the underlying ledger model.

For that model, Cardano dey operate as the settlement infrastructure instead of the visible product. The customer dey experience escrow agreement and payment workflow, while the blockchain dey enforce the conditions under am.

Trust Defines Hokan’s Next Stage

To expand from bounty platform into general escrow layer increase the responsibility wey the product carry. System wey dey lock funds must explain who dey control the money, how dem dey resolve disputes, wetin go happen if the operator disappear and which security claims independent people don verify.

Andy Tang of Draper Associates and Draper Dragon raise the issue of credibility during the program. Developer fit deploy smart contract and describe am as secure, but users still need reason to trust am with real economic value.

Traditional escrow depend on institution, legal agreements, insurance and established dispute procedures. Smart contract fit reduce administrative costs and automate settlement, but e move trust go the contract code, the security review, the transaction builder, the interface and the dispute mechanism.

Hokan published design dey try put several restrictions directly inside the validator. The platform no suppose fit take user funds, fees go become fixed when escrow don fund, and dispute resolver fit distribute money only between the designated participants. Each contract state still suppose include exit path wey no depend on Moshi Concepts to continue to operate.

The company don outline audit scope wey cover the validator, minting policies, configuration mechanism and the offchain component wey dey build transactions. To include the transaction builder expand the review pass the onchain contract reach the software wey dey assemble wetin user go finally sign.

Hokan still dey move from the published architecture toward broader developer availability. At the time of publication, e documentation, API reference, sandbox, contracts and status page still mark as coming soon. Completed independent audit report never link from the product website.

Moshi Concepts list Draper Dragon as backer without to disclose the financial terms of that relationship. The company incorporate for Delaware, while e research and engineering work dey for Australia.

Bui don still discuss funding wey tie to completed milestones as possible Cardano application. For existing grant systems, approval of completed work and the resulting payment fit happen through separate processes. Smart contract fit release funds after authorized reviewer approve milestone, while the judgment over whether the work meet the agreed standard still remain with person or designated organization.

That model fit support grants, Project Catalyst or future Cardano Treasury workflows, although Moshi Concepts never announce integration or formal agreement with those systems. Dem represent possible markets to test after product, security review and customer demand don establish.

Draper University no give Bui final answer on whether escrow na the right market. E change the order wey Moshi Concepts plan to take answer that question. As Bui summarize am, “To dey busy to build something no be the same as to build the right thing.”

The company now plan to release limited MVP, continue customer interviews and expand around the segments wey demonstrate actual demand. Public documentation, accessible sandbox, published contracts, completed security work and initial integrations form the next defined stage of that process.

The concrete change wey dem bring back from San Mateo no be only bigger product idea. Hokan dey developed as infrastructure wey must prove e role through applications, customer use and escrow transactions wey dem complete under the rules wey Moshi Concepts don publish.