Dead Capital Theory
The $10 trillion problem statement that Proveniq solves
The Problem: Trillions in Dormant Value
Across the globe, individuals and businesses own physical assets worth an estimated $10+ trillion that sit idle—unable to be leveraged, insured accurately, or liquidated efficiently. This is Dead Capital.
What is Dead Capital?
Dead Capital refers to physical assets that:
- Cannot be easily verified for authenticity or condition
- Lack documented provenance or chain of custody
- Are underinsured or improperly valued
- Cannot be used as collateral for loans or credit
- Have no liquid marketplace for quick sale
"The mystery of capital is that the poor have assets, but they cannot be leveraged because they exist outside the formal property system." — Hernando de Soto
The Scale of the Problem
| Asset Category | Estimated Dead Capital |
|---|---|
| Luxury Goods (Watches, Jewelry) | $1.2 Trillion |
| Art & Collectibles | $1.7 Trillion |
| Electronics & Equipment | $2.1 Trillion |
| Vehicles & Machinery | $3.4 Trillion |
| Other Physical Assets | $2.6 Trillion |
Why Does Dead Capital Exist?
- Verification Friction — Authenticating physical items requires expertise, time, and trust
- Provenance Gaps — Most items lack documented history after initial purchase
- Insurance Inefficiency — Claims processes are slow, fraudulent, and adversarial
- Liquidity Barriers — Selling authenticated items requires specialized marketplaces
- Collateral Limitations — Lenders cannot efficiently verify and secure physical assets
The Proveniq Solution
Proveniq transforms Dead Capital into Living Assets through a unified ecosystem that:
- Digitizes physical items with verified provenance
- Authenticates through hardware verification (Locker + SmartTags)
- Records immutable chain of custody on the Ledger
- Enables instant insurance claims via ClaimsIQ
- Unlocks liquidity through Bids marketplace
- Collateralizes assets for lending via Capital
The Intelligence Layer
At the center of this ecosystem is Proveniq Core—the API and data orchestration layer that connects all modules and enables:
- Real-time asset valuation
- Risk scoring and fraud detection
- Automated compliance and reporting
- Cross-module data synchronization
Market Opportunity
The addressable market for Dead Capital solutions spans multiple industries:
- Insurance — $6.3T global premium market with 10-15% leakage
- Lending — $12T consumer credit market seeking new collateral types
- Luxury Resale — $50B+ market growing 15% annually
- Asset Management — Institutional demand for alternative asset exposure
Proveniq is positioned to capture value across this entire spectrum by providing the foundational infrastructure for physical asset intelligence.