NearPad is a launchpad & DeFi hub seeking to provide access to crowdfunding through the trade of tokens for projects. The platform aims to launch crowdfunding for startups while offering the community fair entry to vetted and safe opportunities.

The platform is on the NEAR blockchain. The NEAR blockchain is a layer-one blockchain aiming to solve the issues of slow transaction rates, limited throughput, and poor compatibility. As per the website, at the heart of countless innovations, the DeFi industry focuses on connecting growth communities to founders, developers to product users, problems to solutions, and sometimes, solutions to issues waiting to occur. This resulted in a rewarding environment for both creators and the community that stands by them. However, as the industry continues to grow, it's becoming difficult for developers to connect with potential communities and for communities to communicate with the groundbreaking potentials in the space. Unfortunately, there is often too much noise on both sides to filter through. That is why NearPad seeks to be a one-stop shop bridging disruptors to markets that need disrupting, startups to user base, and users to products they use.

Furthermore, by launching the PAD token, the platform aims to offer the platform's benefits to the users. PAD token is an ERC-20 token. Additionally, PAD token holders are permitted to stake, govern, and earn protocol fees.

Finally, NearPAD envisions to pave the way into the core of an ecosystem that requires a platform for developers, traders, and the community to foster growth.

On May 18, 2021, the team disclosed the 2021 roadmap. The roadmap suggests a phased development:

Phase 1: Minimum Viable Product – MVP. Minimum viable product or MVP refers to a new product recently introduced in the market with basic features.

Phase 2: Yield Farming. Portfolio management and auto-compounding tools for yield farming to go live. With these tools, users find, manage, and optimize yields across different protocols on the NEAR ecosystem.

Phase 3: NearPASS. NearPass is a non-fungible token that gives users exclusive access to events and pools on NearPad.