Category: Smart Contract Platforms

Smart Contract Platforms

  • Algorand (ALGO) Explained

    Algorand (ALGO) Explained

    What is Algorand?

    Algorand is a high-performance next-generation blockchain whose goal is to create a transparent system in which everyone can achieve success through decentralized projects and applications. Many have called this project “Blockchain 3.0”, as it solves Bitcoin’s well-known scalability problems whilst maintaining security and decentralization. Algorand has the native token $ALGO, which will be used as a transfer of value on the network. In terms of technology backbone, Algorand uses a Pure Proof of Stake (PPOs) and pseudorandom functions to prevent malicious attackers from colluding on the network.

    Algorand stands out from other high-performance blockchains by the credibility of its founder, MIT professor Silvio Micali. Professor Micali has is the recipient of the prestigious Turing Award for computer science and many of his inventions have directly impacted the cryptocurrency scene.


    Founder of Algorand: Silvio Micali

    Silvio Micali is the recipient of the Turning award (the highest award from computer scientists) with innovations built around his research in cryptography, zero-knowledge, pseudorandom generation, secure protocols and mechanism design. On top of this, Dr. Micali is the co-inventor of probabilistic encryption, Zero-Knowledge Proofs, Verifiable Random Functions and many of the protocols that are the foundations of modern cryptography

    Algorand Foundation

    The Algorand Foundation makes use of the Algorand protocol and software developed by Silvio Micali and his team. Their aim is to create an ecosystem that everyone can use to build a borderless digital economy on Algorand.

    Specifically, the Algorand foundation holds one-quarter of the total supply of ALGO (i.e. 500 million ALGO), and manages the Algorand blockchain.

    Algorand attempts to overcome the Blockchain Trilemma

    Blockchain can only have a maximum of 2 of these properties
    Vitalik Buterin proposed that a Blockchain can only have a maximum of 2 of these properties

    Currently, transactions on the blockchain are very slow because of the “Blockchain Trilemma”. This is a term coined by Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum.

    According to this idea, a blockchain has three major features: decentralization, scalability and security.

    However, the Blockchain Trilemma proposes that it is very hard for a project to have all three features to a satisfactory condition. A network that is decentralized and has a tough security would not be scalable. Similarly, a blockchain that is decentralized and scalable will have little security etc.

    Buterin believes at a fundamental level, a blockchain network can only achieve two of the three features at any time. The Blockchain Trilemma could be the source of scalability issues on most cryptocurrency blockchains. Most cryptocurrency projects cannot handle high numbers of transactions while ensuring network decentralization and security.

    What is Algorand- Is it really a Next Generation blockchain?

    To attempt to overcome this, Algorand opted for a Pure Proof of Stake (Pure PoS) consensus mechanism. Interestingly, the mechanism employs a different approach compared to other alterations of the PoS mechanism.

    For instance, instead of requiring 100% consensus from all the validating parties, Algorand is comfortable with a two-thirds majority consensus. This means that in order to attack Algorand, you will need to purchase more than one third of the total supply of Algorand. This will anyway be uneconomical and holding such a large volume of the supply means that you have a large stake and would not want to see it fail.

    Algorand’s secret sauce: Cryptographic sortition

    Since today’s blockchain platforms require speed as an integral component, Algorand has a fast transaction time by enabling fast transaction finality through cryptographic sortition.  

    According to its website

    “All transactions are final in Algorand. Once a block appears, users can rely on the transactions it contains immediately, as they can be confident that the block will forever be part of the chain. Even if the Internet is split into multiple pools of users, only one safe and consistent Algorand chain will exist. [Additionally], Neither a few delegated users nor a fixed committee is responsible for proposing blocks in Algorand. Instead, all users are randomly, secretly, and continuously selected to participate in the Algorand consensus protocol.” 

    The process of confirming blocks on the platform involves two stages; the proposal and voting stage. During the proposal stage, a token is randomly selected, and its owner suggests the next block to be confirmed. At the voting stage, 1000 random token owners are selected to form a committee that approves the proposed block. 

    How to Stake Algorand?

    Anyone can participate in the Algorand platform as a block proposer by merely switching their address from offline to online on the Algoexplorer. Luckily, this option does not depend on the amount of Algo tokens staked. Mining is not required, all you need is to stake its ALGO token and have the nodes online.

    The Algorand platform supports two types of nodes; relay and participation. An important point to note is that the relay nodes don’t participate in voting or decision making. Instead, they facilitate communication between participation nodes. Relay nodes are also hardware intensive compared to participant nodes. 

    Although Algorand is designed around being fully decentralized, the Algorand Foundation holds a lot of ALGO tokens and hence control. However, the platform is anticipated to be more decentralized in coming months as the foundation continues to liquidate its position. 

    You can also stake Algorand using your Ledger cryptocurrency hardware wallet. Check out our Ledger Nano X review.

    Algorand 2.0 Protocol Upgrade

    On 22nd of November 2019, the Algorand foundation announced the next huge leap for Algorand – dubbed Algorand 2.0. This release brings about 3 major features: Native token issuance (Algorand Standard Asset), Atomic swaps for interoperability and smart contract support via the TEAL scripting language.

    Algorand Standard Asset (ASA) brings about easy token creation and issuance directly on the Algorand main chain. ASA supports a wide range of tokens, such as fungible tokens (similar to Ethereum’s ERC-20, and also non-fungible tokens (used for digital collectibles). Algorand’s implementation of tokenised assets is directly on the protocol layer (“Layer 1”), allowing for direct access to assets with maximum security. This is a significant advantage over Layer 2 Scaling which requires payment channels in order to operate.

    “Algorand is delivering that innovation with this new set of features that brings an impressive amount of opportunity to decentralized finance. 

    Shay Finkelstein (CTO of Securitize)

    Algorand listed on Coinbase, price surges over 30% in one day

    In a complete surprise to cryptocurrency enthusiasts, Algorand was listed on Coinbase on 17th July 2020. People found out only when they saw the announcement on Coinbase’s blog, whereby the Exchange said that their customers can now buy, sell, convert, send, receive or store $ALGO in all Coinbase supported regions. Be sure to check out our Coinbase exchange review and some hacks and tips to avoid Coinbase fees.

    People were completely caught off guard by this announcement since in the few weeks prior Coinbase had talked about 18 other cryptocurrencies they might consider listing. Yet Coinbase was not one of those 18 cryptocurrencies.

    This listing created a whole flurry of activity for $ALGO, especially in terms of its prices. Since the listing, prices for $ALGO shot up 30% since the announcement and was even trading at $0.367 at its peak.

    Algorand becomes the official blockchain platform of FIFA

    FIFA, the world football governing body has announced its partnership with Algorand. This sponsorship and technical partnership will see Algorand becoming the official blockchain platform for FIFA, providing blockchain-supported wallet solutions as well as helping FIFA develop its digital assets strategy.

    Algorand will also be a FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Regional supporter in North America and Europe, and a FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia and New Zealand 2023 official sponsor.

    The future of ALGO token: Algorand’s 10-year plan

    When the Algorand blockchain was first launched, 10 billion ALGO was minted, which represents the fixed and unchangeable maximum supply of AGLO.

    Since then, only 16% of this total supply has been injected into circulation via an auction in June 2019 and subsequent community rewards. Auction proceeds have been used to finance various community, academic, and industry projects which ultimately support the development of economic infrastructure and business opportunities on the Algorand blockchain.

    After consideration by the Algoradnd team and based on their analysis and feedback received, the Algorand team have decided that the remainder of the initial 10 billion ALGO tokens would be gradually distributed over a period of 10 years from 2020, i.e. by 2030, the entire supply of ALGO would be distributed. This is much longer than the initial 4 years from 2020 as originally planned by the Algorand team.

    In order to implement Founder Silvio Micali’s vision of innovative community governance, the Algorand team are moving towards a new reward system that rewards existing and future participants who are committed to participating in the governance of the Algorand ecosystem and prove their loyalty by locking up their ALGO for the long term. Resources i.e. 3 billion ALGO will be correspondingly distributed to reward long-term holders, and economic and business activity on the Algorand blockchain. The aim of this is to achieve a rate of growth of chain loyalty and economic adoption which would be more than enough to compensate for the gradual release of tokens over 10 years.

    Furthermore, the funds initially allocated for sales will now be diverted to other areas such as community incentives, governance participation and ecosystem support.

    FAQ

    How do you mine Algorand?

    It is currently not possible to mine Algorand using computer hardware. Algorand uses a proof-of-stake consensus, so it is possible to earn ALGO rewards by simply staking Algorand in the wallet.

    Where is Algorand located?

    Algorand is a decentralized project founded by MIT professor Silvio Micali. The foundation responsible for maintaining Algorand, the Algorand Foundation is incorporated in Singapore and is located at 1 George Street, #10-01, One George Street, Singapore (049145).

    How do I buy an Algorand?

    You can Buy Algorand on popular exchanges such as Binance or Coinbase with the ticker $ALGO

    How do you stake algorand

    Algorand can be directly staked via the mobile wallet application which can be installed on both Android and iOS devices. To stake the coin, deposit ALGO directly into the wallet. The wallet will automatically accumulate ALGO over time.

    What is Algorand’s community governance?

    Algorand started its community governance program on 1st October 2020, it gives ALGO holders the power to make decisions regarding the direction and future of Algorand. People can participate in governance i.e. become Governors by committing their ALGO for the duration of the 90 day voting period and then voting on the proposals. After the 90-day voting period, participants can claim their governance rewards.

    Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.

  • Stacks ($STX): Bringing Bitcoin’s security to decentralised apps

    Stacks ($STX): Bringing Bitcoin’s security to decentralised apps

    Stacks ($STX) (formerly Blockstack) is an open-source network that allows developers to easily build decentralised applications (such as decentralised finance DeFi applications) and smart contracts. It also relies on Bitcoin as a backbone by reusing its computing power and blockchain for settlement and security with a new mechanism known as proof of transfer (PoX). Below, we look into PoX and everything you need to know about Stacks.


    Background

    Stacks is handled by a globally-distributed team that includes scientists from leading universities such as MIT, Stanford, and Princeton. On top of that, The project is a public company with its headquarters in New York.

    Stacks’s place in the DeFi and broader crypto ecosystem is further cemented by being backed by notable names in the industry such as Y Combinator, Foundation Capital, Digital Currency Group, Winklevoss Capital, and LUX.

    What is Stacks?

    Stacks is a decentralized platform that leverages the Bitcoin platform’s security to power the creation of smart contracts and decentralized applications (Dapps). Interestingly, the network does not have to recreate the system’s PoW mechanism to connect to it. The project has four major layers; application, protocol, Stacks blockchain, and the Bitcoin system.

    What is Proof of Transfer (PoX)?

    Proof of Transfer (PoX) and the earliest Proof of Work (PoW) are requirements to define what a miner needs to do in order to create blocks on the blockchain. The purpose of mining is to verify a transactions’ legitimacy and in return miners are rewarded with cryptocurrencies. Proof of Work is the mechanism used for Bitcoin whereby miners compete to solve a puzzle using their computer’s processing power in order to add each block to the chain.

    Learn more about what REAL cryptocurrency mining looks like.

    However, Bitcoin has its fair share of drawbacks. It has a very low transaction speed and is not smart contract-friendly. Therefore, second-layer solutions like the Lightning Network have tried to provide fast Bitcoin transactions but failed to power smart contracts.

    As such, it has lost in the competition to Ethereum who now powers most decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. Yet, with Ethereum witnessing increased congestion, new projects are shifting from Bitcoin and Ethereum’s proof of work (PoW) to platforms using proof of stake (PoS) and other energy-friendly consensus mechanisms such as proof of burn (PoB). Now Stacks wants to take this a step further with their proof of transfer (PoX).

    Name What miner needs to do to mint new cryptocurrencies
    Proof of work (PoW) Use electricity towards computations i.e. solving complex problems.
    Proof of stake (PoS) Dedicate an economic stake in a base cryptocurrency
    Proof of burn (PoB) Destroy a base cryptocurrency
    Proof of transfer (PoX) Transfer a base cryptocurrency
    Proof of work and other mechanisms

    Stacks Blockchain

    As mentioned earlier, Stacks has four major layers; application, protocol, Stacks blockchain, and the Bitcoin system.

    Stacks blockchain is the solid rock that holds the ecosystem together. It is a distributed layer by itself and allows users to create smart contracts and virtual assets. What’s interesting with this layer is that it’s not a layer two chain but connects to the BTC-powered network with a 1:1 block ratio.

    This implies that whatever happens on the Stacks platform is easily verifiable on the Bitcoin platform.

    How Do the Two Platforms Connect?

    To interface the two independent distributed networks, the Stacks blockchain uses PoX instead of PoW. Generally, the mechanism enables miners to mine a new digital currency by transferring a base currency. In the case of Stacks, transferring BTC results in a new coin being minted on the Stacks protocol.

    Apart from fronting a new consensus mechanism i.e. PoX, the decentralized platform allows its users to easily create virtual assets that are transferable, and ownership can be assigned. The assets can represent a wide range of use cases such as business models, funding, and governance.

    However, to effectively cater to each of these use cases, Stacks, through the Stacks blockchain, supports different asset types such as fungible and non-fungible tokens.

    Learn more about the differences between fungible and non-fungible tokens.

    To power smart contracts, the Stacks blockchain uses a smart contract-centric programming language called Clarity, which provides enhanced security. Notably, the programming language is employed by leading decentralized platforms such as Algorand.

    Protocol Layer

    The protocol layer has the storage, authentication, financial, and naming service. Stacks’ storage system is called Gaia. It stores app data without the need for a third-party service provider.

    It utilizes off-chain cloud systems such as a DigitalOcean or Azure to power super-fast data access by applications. Fortunately, the data is secured by its creator’s private key.

    On the other hand, Stacks uses a decentralized feature to provide authentication. Authentication powers access to the network’s apps using a username and details on Gaia.

    The financial aspect of the system supports DeFi platforms such as those providing decentralized exchanges and lending. The financial pillar is further strengthened by the protocol’s use of Clarity to drive smart contracts.

    For instance, the smart contract-programming language can interface directly with the Bitcoin blockchain. Additionally, it’s reinforced to prevent security breaches and anticipate possible vulnerabilities.

    Stacks has a unique naming feature called BNS (Blockstack Naming Service). Despite being decentralized, the service enables the platform’s users to give assets human-readable names. The names are secured with a combination of public and private keys.

    $STX Token: What is is and tokenomics?

    Activities on the Stacks blockchain are powered by a native currency known as Stacks token ($STX). It is used up as “fuel” when making transactions, interacting with smart contracts and using the BNS feature. It is also distributed as a reward to STX miners (see below).

    The genesis block minted 1.3 billion Stacks tokens. Minted coins were shared among the founders, treasury, equity investors, employees, two token sales, and app mining.

    Stacks token distribution
    Stacks token distribution (Image credit: Stacks Whitepaper)

    App mining is Stacks’ way to reward developers for building high-quality applications on the Stacks network.

    Stacks is available on Binance, HashKey, Crypto.com, and Kucoin. Unfortunately, its availability has been set for non-US persons only.

    Stack Network’s Use Cases

    From the start, the platform is built to enable privacy and allow users to control how their data is used in a world where user data is treated as a commodity for sale. And with Stacks’ use of PoX, Clarity, and other qualities, developers can ensure data privacy when creating apps, eliminate central authorities in financial products, and build fair games.

    Stacks 2.0 and use cases

    Stacks 2.0 blockchain is a layer-1 blockchain utilising the Bitcoin blockchain as a secure base-layer to bring apps and smart contracts to Bitcoin. Stacks 2.0 is currently in the testnet phase. The team have confirmed they are on track to reach code completion for the Stacks 2.0 blockchain by 15th December 2020 and have set a launch date for 14th January 2021.

    Stacks implements proof of transfer (PoX) as a consensus mechanism and natively connects to Bitcoin. Therefore developers can ensure data privacy when creating apps, eliminate central authorities in financial products, and build fair games without the need to modify Bitcoin.

    There will be 2 types of participants on Stacks

    STX miners

    They can spend BTC to elect leaders by sending transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain, where a Verifiable Random Function (VRF) will randomly select the leader of each round. The leader then writes the new block on the Stacks chain.

    As a reward, STX miners get STX tokens, transaction fees, and the Clarity contract execution fees of each block.

    STX holders

    Holders can participate in consensus by locking up their STX for a cycle, running a full node, and sending useful information on the Stacks network as transactions.

    As a reward, STX holders can earn Bitcoin rewards and unlike in the proof of stake mechanism, there is no risk of slashing for STX holders.

    Conclusion

    With an increasing number of security breaches on smart contracts and blockchain platforms, leveraging Bitcoin’s security when building smart contracts puts Stacks at the top of the game. Using Clarity at the base of every smart contract keeps hackers at bay, especially in the DeFi scene where malicious actors are always on the prowl for vulnerabilities in protocols.

    Additionally, Chainlink oracles provide a trusted source of off-chain data for developers, while PoX allows for a one-on-one connection to the BTC-powered blockchain.

    We are certainly curious to see what the team come up with in Stacks 2.0 and whether they can live up to their aims.

    Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.

  • What is Cardano ($ADA)?

    What is Cardano ($ADA)?

    Cardano is a decentralized smart contract platform which would be driven by peer reviewed academic research and capable of running both financial applications and decentralised applications. Established by a former co-founder of Ethereum, Cardano aims to improve on Ethereum by offering low-cost, secure and scalable transactions. To improve smart contract security, Cardano uses the programming language Haskell which has been proven to be easier to audit and formally verify. In addition, Cardano openly addresses the need for regulatory oversight whilst maintaining consumer privacy and protections through an innovative software architecture.

    Check out our explainer video on Cardano ($ADA)

    What is the ADA token and its uses?

    ADA is Cardano’s native cryptocurrency. It was launched on 1st January 2018 through an initial coin offering as a utility token and will have 45 billion total supply. It is currently the 8th most popular cryptocurrency based on market capitalisation according to CoinGecko.

    Upon the opening of the Shelley Public testnet on 9th June 2020, and any operator can set up a Cardano stake pool in anticipation for staking and delegation on the mainnet to be released in Summer 2020.

    Eventually, ADA will allow users to send value between two parties, pay for goods or services, deposit funds on an exchange, or enter an application. ADA will also be used to power the transactions on the Cardano network.

    Founder: Charles Hoskinson

    Charles Hoskinson is a co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Ethereum Classic, with extensive experience working with smart contracts and the programming language Haskell. He is an outspoken critic of Ethereum and parted ways with the Ethereum team in 2016. This was likely due to ideological differences arising from the team’s response to the DAO hack of 2016. Hoskinson is now the CEO of Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK), and they have devoted a large team of expert engineers and researchers to build Cardano from the ground up.

    Cardano – development of the blockchain protocol

    Cardano aims to become the third generation blockchain, overcoming issues with previous generations of blockchains namely lack of scalability, interoperability and sustainability. Cardano aims to develop its platform upon these 2 guiding principles:

    • Peer-review: any science guiding the solutions to these issues goes through peer review.
    • High assurance code: Cardano aims to bring the same level of scientific rigour for mission critical systems such as aerospace to the development of their project.

    Cardano’s platform has the following key features:

    • Cardano will be built in Haskell code. Haskell uses a math based approach that results in a much more secure and reliable protocol.
    • A formally verified Proof of Stake consensus called Ouroboros. It is the first provably secure blockchain protocol developed by the IOHK team and peer reviewed. It has advantages over the traditional proof of work blockchains (e.g. as used by Bitcoin) by requiring less computation resources (there will be no mining) and is thus cheaper to run, yet being just as secure as the more popular Proof of Work algorithm. It also comes with a novel reward mechanism to prevent attacks like block withholding and selfish-mining.
    • Recursive InterNetwork Architecture (RINA): Cardano is looking towards building RINA in order to reduce the bandwidth which is required for communicating and disseminating data. The idea is that RINA has fewer protocols but is able to work faster, yet still providing transparency, privacy and scalability.
    • The protocol is geared towards protecting users’ privacy rights while taking into account the needs of regulators. In doing so, Cardano is the first protocol to balance these requirements in a nuanced and effective way, pioneering a new approach for cryptocurrencies.
    • Cardano will also be completely open source and patent-free.

    Cardano’s platform is being constructed in 2 layers- a settlement layer and a computational layer. This gives the system flexibility during maintenance and allow for upgrades by way of soft forks.

    After completion of the settlement layer that will run ADA, the separate computing layer will be built to handle smart contracts. Cardano will also run decentralised applications, or dapps, services not controlled by any single party but instead operate on a blockchain.

    Advantages and Disadvantages of Cardano?

    Advantages of Cardano

    Many smart contract users believe that Cardano holds the key for long term secure development. This because of the numerous hacks and vulnerabilities in platforms such as Ethereum. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has criticized Ethereum as a “rushed product” with vulnerabilities which led to famous hacks such as The DAO. This could be viewed as a symptom of the flaws in Ethereum’s programming language, Solidity. Cardano improves on this by allowing for development using Haskell which can be formally verified.

    Cardano’s use of the proof of stake model in itself brings lots of advantages such as less susceptibility to interference because the nodes will be responsible for throughput and thus eliminating the need for extra machines. In turn less energy will be consumed which is better for the environment.

    Rewards are given out based on the number of tokens held rather than the amount of computational power contributed, which is fairer.

    The platform’s 2 layered system allows for each layer to be responsible for a complete set of tasks. This means more potential for interoperability with different cryptocurrency platforms and is therefore more scalable compared to Ethereum.

    Disadvantages of Cardano

    Critics of Cardano have pointed to the slow development and overly ideal goals of the project. This can be risky for Cardano because it could be overtaken by more aggressive competitors, or the regulatory environment can change meanwhile.

    Many features promised by the Cardano team are still not yet available. So a lot of what is said about how its cryptocurrency ADA would work is still theoretical.

    What is the Daedalus wallet?

    In order to store and use ADA, you must install Cardano’s Daedalus wallet. With the wallet you can send and receive ADA as well as view your transaction history.

    The Daedalus wallet will also offer the following features:

    • Unlimited Accounting – Manage any number of wallets with Cardano’s innovative hierarchical deterministic wallet implementation. This will give you more control over how your funds are organised. It also has powerful backup features to help recover your funds anytime.
    • Advanced Security – Cardano will not hold your keys. They use the most advanced cryptography in the world to ensure safety from attack and offer spending passwords and seeds for all your accounts.
    • Export to paper certificates- Wallets can be exported to paper certificates giving users the option of placing funds in cold storage.
    • Built with Web Technologies – Daedalus is built on top of Electron, a battle-proven open source development platform to build cross-platform desktop apps using Javascript, HTML and CSS.

    The Daedalus wallet is still a work in progress, features which are expected to be coming soon include:

    • Support for Bitcoin and Ethereum Classic.
    • Staking features which allow ADA holders to earn more ADA tokens.
    • A mobile wallet for both iOS and Android.

    What is the Goguen Era of Smart Contracts?

    On 12 September 2021, Cardano’s Alonzo hard fork upgrade went live on mainnet. Therefore, users can now create and deploy smart contracts on the Cardano blockchain.

    To learn more about what the Gouguen Era and Alonzo Hard Fork means for the development of Cardano, check out our detailed article here.

    Cardano enters DeFi with Occam Finance ($OCC)

    Occam Finance ($OCC) is a suite of DeFi (Decentralized Finance) solutions tailored for Cardano and managed and maintained by the Occam Association, a blockchain entity based in Switzerland. Currently, Occam offers 3 major products: OccamRazer, OccamX and OccamDAO.

    Resources:

    Website https://cardanofoundation.org/
    IOHK website https://iohk.io/
    Ouroboros whitepaper https://iohk.io/research/papers/#9BKRHCSI
    Blog https://cardanofoundation.org/blog/

  • 0x ($ZRX) guide: The future of cryptocurrency exchanges?

    0x ($ZRX) guide: The future of cryptocurrency exchanges?

    0x ($ZRX) is an open protocol for developers to build their own decentralised cryptocurrency exchanges on the Ethereum blockchain. 0x came about as an answer to the problems inherent in centralised exchanges (CEX) and decentralised exchanges (DEX). For CEXs, approximately USD $1.1 billion has already been lost through security breaches on these platforms. Thus cryptocurrency enthusiasts have become wary for fear of losing their funds. Decentralised exchanges were meant to be an answer to this, but they have also issues of increased friction and increasing transaction costs. In this guide, we will explore what 0x is already offering in today’s market, and take a look at their recently released version 3 of the protocol.

    Background

    0x is a brainchild of its CTO, Amir Bandeali, and its CEO, Will Warren. Other key individuals behind the project include their blockchain engineers, product designers, researchers, and business strategists. They also have a strong list of advisors including Fred Ehrsam, Co-founder of Coinbase and David Sacks, former COO of PayPal.

    What is 0x?

    0x is a protocol built on the Ethereum blockchain to create and power decentralized exchanges. Its aim is to be interfaced with other systems to power high-end decentralized applications (dapps).

    The protocol seeks to inspire the movement of assets across the financial sector by eliminating third parties that have been making the process complicated and costly. The presence of smart contracts has also helped push third parties further to oblivion.

    The advent of DEXs comes to safeguard users’ funds and prevent government censorship. These exchanges place the security of users’ funds onto the users themselves instead of trusting centralized platforms, which are prone to hacks.

    Due to the Bitcoin blockchain scalability issues and lack of smart contract flexibility, dapp developers have flocked to Ethereum to build decentralized solutions such as exchanges. Unfortunately, with everyone looking to build a specialized dapp, Ethereum has been flooded with applications that cannot communicate well with each other.

    Furthermore, these applications have varying degrees of security and quality. 0x came to solve this user fragmentation issue, as well as reduce the cost of using dapps.

    How does 0x work?

    Although it is built on top of Ethereum, its orders are dealt with off-chain as relayers are used to match the orders. The orders are only uploaded on the Ethereum blockchain after the process is complete. Off-chain signing reduces the amount of gas used in a particular transaction while also reducing the load on the main chain.

    A relayer on the platform can be thought of as a decentralized exchange that has both public and private order books. Orders are broadcasted through these order books to make a suitable match.

    Apart from reducing the gas fees involved, this approach also allows users to have control over their funds. An important feature of a relayer is that it only facilitates but does not conduct trades.

    To allow this, the relayer needs to be supplied with the order maker’s signature, which is then delivered to the DEX’s smart contract. Relayers are rewarded using the protocol’s native token, ZRX, though this has been changed along with several other features in version 3 of 0x.

    0x version 3: A new protocol with enhanced features

    In August 2020, the decentralized protocol released a new version 3 that enables users to develop a more interconnected DeFi ecosystem. There are 3 major upgrades in this new version: staking ZRX tokens, liquidity bridges and flexible fees.

    0x staking features

    Version 3 of 0x introduced a staking mechanism which allows trading fees to be accepted in any token. Market makers that provide liquidity are seen as crucial for 0x’s long-term growth since they bring in liquidity. Hence a new staking feature was introduced whereby market makers on 0x are given monetary rewards. This means that any ZRX holder can join a market maker’s staking pool and be entitled to a share of the liquidity rewards. Meanwhile, it is in the best interests of the market maker to entice stakers to join their pool because it increases their potential liquidity rewards payouts and their voting power on governance issues since stakers are required to delegate half their voting power to the market maker.

    Liquidity bridges

    Liquidity bridges is an exciting upgrade for decentralised finance (DeFi) developers who are building dapps that will benefit from accessing more liquidity. This is because the feature will enable them to source liquidity not only from the 0x network itself, but other DEXs such as UniSwap or Kyber from a single point of integration, known as 0x API (more on that below). In short, allowing users access to liquidity in other DEXs, thereby ensuring that orders are being filled to reach higher volumes, and thus attracting even more users onto the platform.

    Flexible fees for Relayers

    Previously, 0x only allowed Relayers to receive fees in ZRX only. This was problematic because sometimes Relayers may not want to receive fees in ZRX. It also led to a poor experience for Relayers since it created more additional steps in DEX trading, for example one of the largest 0x DEXs by volume didn’t have fees. And there is speculation that this is because of the limited ways in which fees could be paid out. This has been fixed in version 3, where Relayers can choose to have their fees paid in any Ethereum-based token or even in the token currently being traded.

    ZRX Token: What is it?

    The ZRX token is built based on Ethereum’s ERC-20 standard. Apart from being used to pay relayers for facilitating trades, it is also utilized for governance on the 0x protocol. In line with this, the amount of ZRX held determines the power a governor has when contributing to governance issues such as protocol upgrades.

    The ZRX token supply is hard-capped at one billion. During its launch in 2017, half of the tokens were released and distributed to developers (15%), 0x (15%), founding team (10%), and advisors (10%).

    ZRX is listed on Binance, Coinbase, Huobi, HitBTC, and other leading exchanges. For storage, the token is supported by Ledger (both the Nano X and Nano S), Enjin, Exodus, and any other cryptocurrency wallets primed for ERC-20 tokens.

    As mentioned above, the 0x team has recently introduced staking features for ZRX which gives more incentives for both liquidity providing market makers and ZRX holders.

    Other products powered by 0x

    0x has a whole suite of products aside from its open protocol. These are:

    ·         0x Instant– This offers a way to buy cryptocurrency on any app or website.

    ·         0x mesh – Allows access to a global P2P order book for tokens.

    ·         0x API – Can be used to accumulate liquidity from platforms built on the protocol such as UniSwap, and Mesh. It can also be used to swap tokens based on price.

    ·         Matcha – A platform to find the best prices across exchange networks.

    ·         0x Extensions – For use with relayers to incorporate new trading types.

    ·         0x OTC – This is a consumer-based exchange that allows for a P2P exchange of ETH tokens without a relayer. Unlike the other P2P exchanges, 0x OTC enables the seller to send a link to the buyer on any platform, including social media, and its results are recorded on the Ethereum blockchain.

    Even with numerous advantages, the protocol uses multi-signature smart contracts that could be exploited since they are still based on code. Also, since the DEXes are still a work in progress, they may not have the liquidity needed to fill orders for lesser-known tokens.

    Conclusion

    As blockchain technology matures, so should the applications run on top of it. However, as more dapps flood the scene, we need a standard quality and security setting to ensure that these systems operate as they are intended. Thankfully, with 0x, the standard is already set.

    Furthermore, dapp developers also need to embrace the system for users to benefit from low transaction fees.

    The 0x protocol can be used in prediction markets such as sports betting, which require untampered results of outcomes of physical events.

    The platform’s vast use cases are also capable of bringing real change in the decentralized world while leveraging off-chain mechanisms to drastically enhance scalability.

    Decentralised Finance (DeFi) series: tutorials, guides and more

    With content for both beginners and more advanced users, check out our YouTube DeFi series containing tutorials on the ESSENTIAL TOOLS you need for trading in the DeFi space e.g. MetaMask and Uniswap. As well as a deep dive into popular DeFi topics such as decentralized exchanges, borrowing-lending platforms and NFT marketplaces

    The DeFi series on this website also covers topics not explored on YouTube. For an introduction on what is DeFi, check out Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Overview: A guide to the HOTTEST trend in cryptocurrency

    Tutorials and guides for the ESSENTIAL DEFI TOOLS:

    More videos and articles are coming soon as part of our DeFi series, so be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our Youtube channel so you can be notified as soon as they come out!

    Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.

  • THORChain ($RUNE) information and guide

    THORChain ($RUNE) information and guide

    Among the growing list of emerging decentralized exchanges lies THORChain and their RUNE token. The Company is one of many decentralized finance (DeFi) options in a field that is creating much buzz within the industry. The decentralised liquidity network, whose successful seed funding was completed last year, is one that should not be missed by those who are looking into this field. After a successful mainnet launch, the cross blockchain answer to Uniswap was made official in the first part of this year. As such we have compiled a complete guide to EVERYTHING you wanted to know about THORChain, answering questions like ‘What is THORchain?’, ‘Who Uses THORChain’ and other important topics.

    What is THORChain? 

    First imagined in 2018, THORChain offers a wide range of services on its decentralized permissionless network. It allows for swapping of assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum as well as providing continuous liquidity pools for users. The platform uses a cross chain and can be used on any blockchain/with any asset, unlike other decentralized exchanges. 

    Their development paper outlines the core conception of THORChain, saying: “THORChain is a liquidity protocol designed to connect all blockchain assets in a marketplace of liquidity through cross-chain bridges and continuous liquidity pools secured by economically incentivised validators.” 

    THORChain’s consensus is Proof-of-Stake and built on Tendermint, with network validators required to bond (lock up) their native token, $RUNE. Validators are punished for bad behaviour by having their stake slashed, which in turn disincentivises such actions.The network’s data is calculated and overseen using Midguard API service and is secured and bonded by ThornNode, which also powers the network. The nodes make vaults and validate the transactions on the site.

    Who uses THORChain?

    Users

    These are the main participants and they usually use the cross chain services between the pools with them paying a slip fee. The fee is paid due to gas fees on external services and for fast execution. However, swapping is non custodial and unrestricted on different chains. 

    Liquidity providers

    These are secondary participants who add liquidity to the various pools which is then bound with RUNE in a separate vault. Using the continuous liquidity pool means the network does not need oracles or have a price feed. Liquidity rewards are earned through fees generated from pools and are paid out when users withdraw. As the THORChain website explained, “liquidity is provided by stakers who earn fees on swaps, turning their unproductive assets into productive assets in a non-custodial manner. Market prices are maintained through the ratio of assets in pools which can be arbitraged by traders to restore correct market prices.”

    Nodes explained

    Nodes are the basis for THORChain’s services. They have three main functions, these are: to Bond RUNE, create vaults (which are like wallets) and witness transactions/produce blocks. They are all run by node administrators who are also rewarded for their work through bond rewards. For a full breakdown of node operators, please click here.

    In terms of THORChain, as previously mentioned, nodes earn two-thirds of the System Income and they make vaults and validate the transactions on the site. Nodes are anonymous, with plausible deniability on all transactions. The nodes are created every three days and compete to enter with bonded capital. The oldest nodes are churned out and replaced when necessary. This allows the nodes to stay fresh and keeps the network constantly updating itself.

    RUNE token: what is it?

    Another integral part of the system and the nodes that run it is THORChain’s native token, RUNE. Available through Binance Chain, the token is a BEP2 token.The RUNE token is used in all liquidity pools and is bonded by nodes. All RUNE tokens are at a 1:1 ratio to asset value and this allows for pools to be linked. RUNE is also the rewards for pools, with the equivalent of 1/3rd of the System Income providing continuous liquidity incentives. 

    Alongside providing on chain liquidity, RUNE is also an important part of the THORChain security. This is because it protects against malicious actors by offering them a larger benefit for liquidating then they would receive from corrupting the system, as nodes earn 2/3rds of the System Income. Thus all transactions using RUNE on the system have double the amount at a 67% to 33% ratio. The other third is for liquidity providers. Not only that, but in terms of security nodes are also closed when malicious activity is detected. 

    RUNE has a total supply of 500 million tokens. Of which 100 million will be sold to the public in 3 stages, 150 million has already been allocated throughout the team, community and operational reserves, and the remaining 220 million is saved for the emissions reserve. 

    How to earn RUNE?

    RuneVault: Liquidators and users of RUNE can have access to the RUNEVault feature which allows you to store and stake the token, with returns on investment. Using a Binance Chain Feature, users can “freeze” their tokens even if they have staked them meaning that the currency is always in the wallet. Earnings are based on weekly RUNE staked, but this weekly taking is reset should you withdraw any amount. 

    Rewards

    THORChain offers rewards for all participants on the network. The rewards are paid out through the distribution of system income. This is worked out by Swap fees plus Block rewards. Swap fees are paid by users when swapping assets and Block rewards are worked out on an emission schedule. As mentioned previously, the system income is paid 67% to the nodes and 33% to the liquidator. However, this ratio is officially worked out by the incentive pendulum. 

    Governance on THORChain

    THORChain attempts to have a minimal governance model. Instead staked capital is the main driver of the market and developers respond accordingly. New assets are easily listed and this means there are rarely many governmental decisions to undertake and it is truly decentralized in many ways. 

    Who is the team behind THORChain?

    The team behind THORChain is purposefully pseudoanonymous. According to their website, “figureheads, personalities and founders undermine a project’s ability to decentralise,” and that, “transparency is demonstrated in other facets (treasury, code, research)”. That being said, there are 10 employees listed on LinkedIn and 12 team members listed with 6 additional advisors on ICOBench. 

    What sets THORChain apart? What are its benefits?

    THORChain takes a little while to understand the basics and the nodes that run the network. However, once you get the hang of the exchange then THORChain has a number of benefits. 

    The main benefit is that with their cross chain feature, any asset can be swapped and a pool created around it. That gives users a huge amount of variety and does not hem them in unlike other decentralized exchange options do. This opens a whole new world of possibilities for DeFi users and one that should be applauded. 

    Conclusion

    For those who are fans of Uniswap, then this decentralized option could be a great alternative. Yet, as Balancer has shown with their recent security scare, the often precarious nature of DeFi security does cause concern. Perhaps though, THORChain with their incentivized payments negates this risk. However, until more is known about the site and they are around for longer it will be hard to make a final judgement. 

    Decentralised Finance (DeFi) series: tutorials, guides and more

    With content for both beginners and more advanced users, check out our YouTube DeFi series containing tutorials on the ESSENTIAL TOOLS you need for trading in the DeFi space e.g. MetaMask and Uniswap. As well as a deep dive into popular DeFi topics such as decentralized exchanges, borrowing-lending platforms and NFT marketplaces

    The DeFi series on this website also covers topics not explored on YouTube. For an introduction on what is DeFi, check out Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Overview: A guide to the HOTTEST trend in cryptocurrency

    Tutorials and guides for the ESSENTIAL DEFI TOOLS:

    More videos and articles are coming soon as part of our DeFi series, so be sure to SUBSCRIBE to our Youtube channel so you can be notified as soon as they come out!

    Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.

  • Walmart China brings VeChain’s Food Traceability Platform to Sam’s Club China

    Walmart China brings VeChain’s Food Traceability Platform to Sam’s Club China

    Around a year ago Walmart China, PwC China dn VeChain jointly announced they were setting up the Walmart China Blockchain Traceability Platform. This Platform would allow Walmart China to make use of blockchain technology to trace its products. Consumers would be able to scan the products on the shelf and have access to detailed information on the product, for example, its source, product inspection reports, and logistics process. Their expectation was that by the end of 2020, 50% of sales of fresh meat, 40% of sales of packaged vegetables, and 12.5% of sales of seafood would be traceable.

    To find out more about Vechain, read our full guide on Vechain (VET).

    Almost a year later, VeChain announced on 2nd June 2020 that Walmart China is committing Sam’s Club China, another of its businesses towards collaboration with VeChain.

    What is Sam’s Club China?

    Owned by Walmart China, Sam’s Club China is branded as a members-only premium supermarket. Currently, Sam’s club has a total of 23 clubs in China. There are plans to expand to have a further 40 to 45 clubs either operational or under construction in China by the end of 2022.

    Its clubs are generally large scale supermarkets averaging around 20,000 square meters and offering groceries in bulk and other goods such as household appliances, home goods, etc. Sam’s Club maintains its premium branding by providing either the best quality product in a particular category or the best-selling brand at its clubs. Sam’s Club also offers its own premium store-brand products called Member’s Mark.

    Launch of Sam’s Club Blockchain Traceability Platform with VeChain

    The launch of the Sam’s Club Blockchain Traceability Platform coincides with Sam’s Club’s “Taste of Sam’s” campaign. This campaign aims at letting customers experience luxury through recipes featuring premium quality foods and products which can be purchased from Sam’s Club.

    The products featured in the campaign include Member’s Mark products which make use of VeChain’s ToolChain technology. Combined with cold-chain IoT and other traditional software and hardware sensors, stakeholders in the supply chain will be able to upload data onto the VeChainThor public blockchain. This data would be contained in a secured QR code which would be tagged onto each product. (https://punandjokes.com/) Hence those involved in the supply chain and even the average consumer would be able to scan the QR code using their smartphones to access information on the product such as its packaging information, its origins, storage requirements, etc. And since this data was stored on the VeChainThor public blockchain, it cannot be tampered with.

    As an example, in the short rib recipe above, customers can pick up a pack of the short-ribs featured in the recipe from Sam’s Club and scan the embedded QR code for more information. The below picture shows the kind of information customers can expect to see. Such as how the product was shipped from its place of origin, the name and location of the manufacturer, best-before times and certification processes.

    Currently there are over 20 product lines, including Member’s Mark products which make use of VeChain’s traceability platform. It is expected that more products will be included in the future.

  • VeChain partners with Bayer China to create CSecure- a clinical trial traceability platform

    VeChain partners with Bayer China to create CSecure- a clinical trial traceability platform

    Bayer China announced its partnership with VeChain during an interview with VCBeat on 28th May 2020- a Chinese news publication focusing on health developments in China. For an in-depth guide to what is Vechain and it’s core features, check out our Vechain Coin Guide

    About Bayer China

    Bayer has links in China since as early as 1882, focusing on the core competencies in the areas of healthcare, nutrition and agriculture. Their aim is to improve quality of life through research and development on preventing, alleviating and treating diseases, as well as ensuring that consumers get healthy, safe and sustainable food. In 2019, Bayer has over 9,000 employees in the Greater China region and sales have well exceeded 3.7 billion Euros.

    VeChain becomes “Partner-for-Life” with Bayer China

    VeChain beat out dozens of competitors and won the Bayer China G4A Partnerships Program in 2019. This Program was created by Bayer to give qualified companies funding, mentorship and networking opportunities to its winners. Most importantly, to become a “partner for life” with Bayer so that the company will become a direct partner and be used with Bayer’s products and services.

    For the purposes of the Program in 2019, Bayer required competitors to solve the issue of Digitised Clinical Trial Traceability. Competitors were required to work directly with Bayer and develop a feasible solution for the issue which would eventually be ready for deployment in line with Bayer’s own milestones and planning. At the end of the competition, VeChain was the only company that was able to satisfy Bayer’s requirements with its solution- CSecure.

    Importance of Digitialised Clinical Trial Traceability

    With still so many unknowns in the medical field and novel yet incurable diseases emerging such as SARS-CoV-2, medical researchers are constantly racing against the clock for the sake of saving lives. Thus it is important to ensure that drug clinical trials are conducted efficiently and when lives are involved, without room for any error. In particular, the data that is collected forms the heart of this process, and is a critical part of the research, development and adoption process for any new medical intervention- including drugs and other forms of treatments. Any issues with this data, such as tampering or errors would hence be very detrimental to the trial process, potentially even ruining it and worse, affecting human lives.

    Hence a solution is needed to ensure that the data collected during the various stages of the trial process is transparent, secure and credible.

    What is VeChain’s CSecure platform?

    CSecure was created by VeChain as a solution to Bayer’s issue of needing digitised clinical trial traceability. The CSecure platform makes use of VeChain’s existing product ToolChain– a kit containing all the necessary hardware, software and service protocols to onboard a business onto the VeChainThor blockchain.

    With CSecure, data obtained from the various stages of clinical trials for drugs are uploaded on the VeChain Thor Blockchain. So that other stakeholders in the process such as researchers, suppliers, distributors, partners and end users can have access to this data. As the data is recorded on the blockchain, the stakeholders accessing the CSecure platform are assured that the data and transactions recorded are traceable, transparent and auditable. (bricks4kidz.com)

    Specifically, each medical product is binded with a QR code with a unique VID (VeChain ID) and recorded on the VeChainThor Blockchain. During the trial process, information that is added to the blockchain is time-stamped, user-identified and cannot be changed. So if there is a discrepancy between the product’s digital profile and real-life attributes, the party responsible can be identified and the situation remedied.

  • ThunderCore (TT) Explained: Will this Blockchain overtake Ethereum?

    ThunderCore (TT) Explained: Will this Blockchain overtake Ethereum?

    What is Thundercore?

    ThunderCore (TT) is a high-performance smart contract platform which allows for the running of decentralized applications (Dapps) and Decentralized Finance (DeFi). Thundercore promises low fees and compatibility with any app written for the popular Ethereum Platform. The underlying currency on Thundercore Network is TT, which is used as a transfer of value and for related gas fees on the platform.

    Thundercore attempts to Solve Scalability, allowing For Under One Second Confirmations. In the last couple of years, many blockchain projects have been working on scaling and improving network speeds. Until recently, it seemed nearly impossible to scale blockchains with big projects like Ethereum failing to do so. ThunderCore seems to have cracked it and may be on track to beating giants like Ethereum in scaling their platform.

    What is the aim of ThunderCore?

    ThunderCore aims to be a high-performance blockchain that enables mass adoption of dApps. It promises comparatively lesser transaction fees (low gas cost), compatibility, security and speed.

    Currently, transactions on the blockchain are very slow. This is because of the “Blockchain Trilemma” a term coined by Vitalik Buterin, the founder of Ethereum.

    Solving the Blockchain Trilemma

    Vitalik Buterin proposed that a Blockchain can only have a maximum of 2 of these properties

    According to the “Blockchain Trilemma“, a blockchain has three major features: decentralization, scalability and security.

    However, the blockchain trilemma proposes that it is very hard for a project to have all three features to a satisfactory condition. A network that is decentralized and has a tough security would not be scalable. Similarly, a blockchain that is decentralized and scalable will have little security etc.

    Buterin believes at a fundamental level, a blockchain network can only achieve two of the three features at any time. The blockchain trilemma could be the source of scalability issues on most cryptocurrency blockchains. Most crypto projects cannot handle high numbers of transactions while ensuring network decentralization and security.

    However, ThunderCore has found a solution for this problem.

    How does ThunderCore solve the Blockchain Trilemma?

    Many projects have tried and failed to continue their emphasis on decentralization and security while incorporating scalability. ThunderCore, however attempts to do this in a unique way. They do this by creating a Fast Path and a Slow Path. The Fast Path is for optimistic conditions. Whilst the Slow Path is for worst-case situations.

    What is the Fast Path and the Slow Path?

    The Fast Path is like a highway, allowing for instant confirmations on the network. However, if anything goes wrong on the Fast Path, ThunderCore users can resort to a Slow Path. The Slow Path is similar to a network of smaller roads. It isn’t very fast, but it will be reliable.

    For the Fast Path, ThunderCore facilitates fast and easy confirmation by 2 ways. The “Committee”, which is executed by a committee of stakeholders. And the “Accelerator” to linearize transactions and data.

    ThunderCore uses Ethereum as the Slow Path as it is one of the most stable networks in the industry. The slow path will take over when the network condition is bad and /or if there is an attack. It also acts as a check to see if the Accelerator is working.

    How to Stake Thundercore?

    Thundercore cannot be mined as a way to generate new TT or gain passive income, hence there is no thundercore mining. Instead to passively generate Thundercore, TT is staked by locking up TT in a particular wallet. The amount of rewards depends on the lockup duration, which can be 7 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months or 1 year. Staking Thundercore is easy, you can do this using the mobile wallet and joining a staking pool.

    What is the ThunderCore (TT) used for?

    The ThunderCore (also known was ThunderToken or TT) is the native cryptocurrency of the ThunderCore network. Analogous to ETH on the Ethereum network, ThunderToken is used for paying gas fees and value transfers.

    The ThunderCore Team

    ThunderCore Team: Chris Wang (CEO), Elaine Shi and Rafael Pass

    The team comprises of engineers, scientists and entrepreneurs. They previously worked in publishing academic papers relating to Bitcoin and smart contracts. They are also the founding members of the Initiative for Cryptocurrency and Contracts (IC3).

    Update Aug 2019: Chief Scientist Elaine Shi has announced that she will be leaving the ThunderCore Project.

    What is the Current Status of ThunderCore?

    The first Thunder release will be fully EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) compatible. Thus, allowing for direct migration of dApps.

    ThunderCore has already deployed its pre-release main-net. Therefore, developers can already start building on ThunderCore. Users can also start deploying smart contracts.

    How do I connect to the ThunderCore Mainnet?

    You can directly connect to Thundercore by changing the RPC settings on Metamask or changing the server on MyEtherWallet.

    ThunderCore Mainnet Settings for Metamask
    1. Install MetaMask: you can install the MetaMask browser extension on your browser. Create an account on the Metamask website and set up the security protocols (for a full guide check out our Metamask Tutorial);
    2. Get ThunderToken (TT): You can get tokens from the Metamask browser extension. Click on the drop down menu and select “custom RPC”. Go to “new network section” and select “advanced option”.
      1. Mainnet RPC URL: https://mainnet-rpc.thundercore.com
      2. Chain ID: 108
      3. Symbol: TT
    3. The TT symbol will appear on your Metamask. You can get 50 free tokens on the ThunderCore website by copying and pasting your Metamask TT address onto the appropriate field. You can also use this process to purchase tokens;
    4. Copy and paste the ERC20 contract: copy smart contract source code from Github; (use mine here: https://remix.ethereum.org/#version=soljson-v0.4.24+commit.e67f0147.js&optimize=false&gist=116b51b7e5bf2cd3f29f2136dac3f08f)
    5. Deploy through Remix ID; and
    6. Check on https://scan.thundercore.com/ .

    Pros and Cons of ThunderCore

    Pros

    • ThunderCore is compatible with the Ethereum network;
    • The network has a faster transaction speed compared to Ethereum;
    • ERC20 smart contracts can be deployed on this network;
    • The team are working on new features that would allow dApp interaction without gas;
    • ThunderCore allows users and developers to utilize existing tools such as Metamask and Truffle etc.; and
    • Developers can use familiar programming languages (e.g. Solidity) while carrying out smart contracts on the network.

    Cons

    • There is currently only one “Accelerator” on this network. This raises questions over how much power will be centralized. (Note the accelerator cannot freeze accounts or pause transactions indefinitely as this would lead to a re-election)

    Token metrics & Circulating supply

    The Thundercore is currently listed and trading on Huobi. The coin is listed as Thunder Token on CoinMarketCap.

    Huobi has released the Token metrics of ThunderToken (TT):

    Total Raised: $50M USD
    Angel round: $0.01 USD/token (2 years lock- till March 2020)
    Seed round: $0.02 USD/token (1 year lock – till Apr-May 2019)
    Final round: $0.10 USD/token(20% released on Feb 28, 40% to be released on May 28, 40% on Aug 28)
    Huobi Lite round: $0.015 USD/token, only $500,000 USD worth of tokens sold

    What we can deduce from this is that ThunderCore valuation dropped from the final Private sale time – from $0.1 to $0.15. Admittedly, the Huobi Lite tokens could also be considered to be sold at a discount to encourage more players to get in. There is controversy over the Huobi Lite sale of TT, as the token price was much lower than the Final Round – upsetting a lot of the initial investors and supporters (such as ThunderFans).

    ThunderCore Hub (Games and Thundercore Giveaways)

    ThunderCore Hub is a wallet and Dapp hub for mobile phones

    Currently ThunderCore Hub is doing a 150 TT giveaway to test out their new Android app. To quality, visit the ThunderCore Hub website and install the beta APK, register for an account and play dApp games to get the free TT.

    Conclusion

    ThunderCore is different because it scales both transactions and smart contracts. This could mean that blockchains can have thousands of transactions per second without compromising on security and decentralization.

    Update (May 1 2019): Mainnet RCP address and Team members & Linkedin Profiles
    Update (May 10 2019): Added listing information on Huobi
    Update (May 14 2019): Added ThunderCore Hub and TT Giveaway

  • Harmony Protocol (ONE): Everything you NEED to know

    Harmony Protocol (ONE): Everything you NEED to know

    Harmony Protocol Logo

    The Harmony (ONE) protocol takes on the challenge of scaling blockchain without sacrificing decentralization. This has been the holy grail of challenges because solving scaling usually involves sacrificing decentralization – however Harmony maintains an open-consensus where anyone can join. This is achieved by:

    • Proof-of Stake – Harmony holders can participate in network consensus and improve network security
    • Deep Sharding – network is split into different teams or “shards” that work together and increase transaction efficiency
    • Network Optimized – Network communications are split into small fragments and shared (Kademlia routing)

    Harmony protocol has a sharding-based, fully scalable, secure and efficient blockchain. This means that the consensus mechanism can provide the blockchain solution necessary for the future of DApps. Even though Proof of Work networks were initially highly decentralized this element can be diluted with high usage. As such, the consensus mechanism for Harmony ensures it is still decentralized and permission-less. These are critical parts of future relevance and sustainability.

    Check out the Boxmining interview with the Co-Founder of Harmony Protocol, Nick White for an introduction to the project.

    Interview with Co-Founder Nick White

    The Competitive Scalability Field

    Providing scalability is a noble endeavor and unsurprisingly, Harmony will not be first to do it. This is because the field already features an array of running projects that also aim to provide the same solution. These rival projects include: EOS, Zilliqa, Algorand, and others. Harmony distinguishes itself by having a solid proof-of-stake system with state sharding. State sharding splits the network into teams that work together. This allows the network to grow faster as more nodes are added (rather than stay stagnant). Chains and transactions are co-ordinated by a beacon chain.

     “Neither of the projects mentioned above has a blockchain which will be performant, scalable, and as low cost as the Harmony blockchain will be.”

    Nick White, Co-founder of Harmony

    Co-founder Nick White touts the fact that Harmony has advantages over and above typical scalability projects. These are in the form of improved user experience, reduction of costs and the ability to support larger user bases for the decentralized app community. This will in turn draw more developers and projects to be a part of the Harmony project community.

    Harmony Protocol Consensus
    Harmony Protocol Consensus

    Needless to say, the target audience is not only limited to DApps developers but also established companies with greater user bases who wish to integrate blockchain technology into their products. White contends that such apps have had the problem of slow and existing networks. Harmony, on the other hand, makes their operations possible by efficient and affordable solutions.

    The Challenge of Attracting New Nodes

    Attracting new nodes to the network is definitely an issue for the network. To this matter, their Co-Founder and CEO, Stephen Tse stated as follows:

     “Harmony is building a robust ecosystem and we are in talks with every major staking as a service company to bring them on board and help grow Harmony’s validator ecosystem.”

    As such, the project has a proposal to lower the barrier for those who wish to participate in the network. This is in the form of lower resource requirements (specfically, 4GB) for new entrants. In addition, Harmony will write scripts that will make the initial setup simple as well as block rewards for staking. The economic model that underlines that is yet to be clear but stakers have the assurance of rewards for participation.

    Binance Partnership

    Binance exchange has recently announced the upcoming Harmony Protocol Initial Exchange Offering (IEO). This IEO will take place on 28th May 2019 and aims to raise funds for a project whose operation is a lot like its name. This is because the idea of providing a pertinent demand for cryptosphere, scalability, is something that can draw on collective human collaboration in the innovative platform.

    Harmony Binance Launchpad
    Harmony will be on Binance Launchpad

    The Binance IEO has been known to be a boost for its featured projects. This is because of the marketing catalyst as well as investor attraction. As such, Harmony can reach millions more with the Binance partnership. The partnership will also be in line with Harmony’s vision to provide scalability to billions across the world.

    White stated that the team has motivation from the global outlook that Binance provides. Blockchain technology has the potential to transform the lives of those both in developed and developing countries. This means that parts of Africa and Latin America, both within the scope of Harmony targets, can also achieve meaningful progress.

    With that in mind, the Binance Launchpad will take place on 28th May 2019. Notably, the process will follow the lottery format that is typical of Binance now. The token price is $0.003175 for one Harmony (ONE) token with a hardcap of US$5 million.

    Verdict

    Harmony Roadmap 2019
    Harmony Roadmap 2019

    In summary Harmony makes a solid stab at tackling blockchain scalablity whilst keeping an open consensus. The highlight of Harmony is the ability to do state sharding rather than simple transactional sharding, allowing more headroom for future scaling without congesting beacon chains.

  • Elastos Explained – what’s a decentralized internet

    Elastos Explained – what’s a decentralized internet

    Elastos is a third generation technology that leverages blockchain technology in giving internet users complete control over their digital properties. The protection that Elastos provide is beyond cryptocurrencies or private data. It covers other intellectual properties such as books, games, movies, and business ideas.

    Elastos is a new Internet technology that is revolutionizing online security and smart technology. Elastos is built on the concept of removing middleman, monetizing computing power, protecting digital assets and offering incentivised digital properties transactions with enhanced security and speed at an affordable cost.

    How does Elastos work?

    Elastos operates in an isolated environment called a virtual machine that runs on elastos runtime. Its is a lightweight operating system kept in a little box. To penetrate the system, an attacker has to create their own box and connect to the user’s data.

    If hackers manage to breach the security, Elastos does not grant Internet access so the information derived cannot be sent out or uploaded to the third-party websites like YouTube, Facebook or Dropbox.

    Alternatively, the hacker may try to download it to external storage, but elastos requires that the owners of the data grant permission from their end. Therefore unless the owners voluntarily share their digital assets, hackers cannot take possession of it giving owners exclusive protection over the data they secure with elastos.

    In another instance, assuming the hackers try to connect another virtual machine like engineering artificial intelligence (AI) scanner, it can only scan and check the data, but it is not transferable as it is an isolated device. The information cannot be passed on to the outside world.

    In another real-life instance, assuming you have a session with your doctor and he connects to your virtual machine, he can only read your medical report but will not be able to save a copy. It is also imperative to the point that the moment you close your Elastos machine, the information viewed by the doctor will be permanently erased guaranteeing you topmost security.

    The Blockchain Technology Behind Elastos

    Now that we know how Elastos works, it is possible for readers to conclude that Elastos does not need a blockchain technology to function in reality, the blockchain provides the secure ID to access Elastos.
    In a case where a hacker tries to override the user’s security, it is the blockchain that will be responsible for the assurance that the ID is authentic, not tampered with, void of virus and malware, and perfectly matches with the one registered in the block.

    Blockchain provides a layer of trust for all the virtual machines that want to connect to a system.

    Real Life Application of Elastos

    Business and Enterprise

    It helps businesses and enterprises to protect the trade secrets, for instance, Coca-Cola can use it to store their recipe menu which will not be available to anyone without their permission

    Professionals

    To safeguard valuable private data and ensure that only people with permission can access the information stored on it

    Content Creators

    Authors, content creators, movies and game developers can leverage the use of elastos in securing the ownership of their intellectual properties. With that, they can scale up their earnings and prevent illegal distributions of their contents to unauthorized users.

    Also, the content owners can use elastos to create a scarcity of their digital asset thereby increasing its value.

    Developers

    Elastos provides large blockchain applications in a secure environment and keeps contents intact after multiple uses

    Ethereum vs. Elastos

    Ethereum operates on a single main chain structure leading to speed limitation while elastos adopts main chain and side chain structure that speeds up the transaction, payment and smart contract support for several applications and services

    Ethereum experiences network congestion and data redundancy while Elastos is the more secure runtime with the independent operating system, software development kit (SDK) that speed up the operating process and prevent data congestion.

    Ethereum exposes data to risk as it employs a front end decentralized application (DApps) while elastos make use of a safe DApps prevented from accessing the networks thus protecting data from DDos. Also, elastos doesn’t make use of IP addresses which implies that hackers cannot track users’ activities.

    Conclusion

    In conclusion, Elastos is a disruptive third generation blockchain technology that offers total protection of data and vital confidential information for an individual or a corporate body. The innovative technology will help content owners to maximize the returns on the sale of their digital assets thus making more from their intellectual properties. Elastos is a very beneficial technology that every user of the internet should have in their possession to create a more secure internet environment for all.