NFT 마켓플레이스를 구축하려는 경우, "무료 발행" 토큰을 활용하는 것은 사용자를 유치하고 네트워크에 참여하도록 인센티브를 제공하는 유용한 방법이 될 수 있습니다. NFT 마켓플레이스에서 무료 발행 토큰을 사용하면 얻을 수 있는 몇 가지 잠재적인 이점은 다음과 같습니다
진입 장벽을 낮출 수 있습니다
사용자가 초기 비용 없이 새 토큰을 생성할 수 있도록 허용하면 사람들이 NFT 마켓플레이스에 더 쉽게 참여할 수 있습니다. 이는 자체 토큰을 생성할 리소스나 전문 지식이 없는 사용자를 포함해 더 다양한 사용자를 유치하는 데 도움이 될 수 있습니다.
사용자 인센티브
무료 발행 토큰은 특정 행동(예: 새로운 NFT 생성 또는 거래 완료)에 대한 보상이나 할인을 제공하여 사용자가 NFT 마켓플레이스에 참여하도록 장려하는 데 사용할 수 있습니다.
사용자 지정
무료로 발행할 수 있는 토큰을 직접 생성하여 NFT 마켓플레이스의 기능과 특징을 사용자 지정할 수 있습니다. 예를 들어 특정 유형의 NFT를 구매하는 데만 사용할 수 있는 토큰을 만들거나 독점 콘텐츠나 기능에 액세스할 수 있는 토큰을 만들 수 있습니다.
주의사항
NFT 마켓플레이스에서 무료로 발행되는 토큰을 활용하려면 이더리움이나 바이낸스 스마트 체인 등 어떤 블록체인 플랫폼을 사용할지 결정한 다음 해당 플랫폼에서 나만의 사용자 지정 토큰을 만들어야 합니다. 여기에는 일반적으로 스마트 컨트랙트를 사용하여 토큰의 규칙과 기능을 정의한 다음 해당 컨트랙트를 블록체인에 배포하는 작업이 포함됩니다.
무료로 발행할 수 있는 토큰을 만든 후에는 사용자가 해당 토큰을 사용해 새로운 NFT를 만들도록 허용하거나 토큰을 NFT 거래에 대한 결제 수단으로 사용하는 등 다양한 방법으로 NFT 마켓플레이스에 토큰을 통합할 수 있습니다. 또한 토큰의 가치를 유지하고 과도하게 부풀려지지 않도록 토큰의 공급과 유통을 어떻게 관리할지도 고려해야 합니다.
블록체인은 디지털 데이터를 저장하고 보호하는 방법으로 1991년에 시작되었습니다. 블록체인은 여러 당사자가 한 번에 액세스할 수 있는 개방형 원장입니다. 블록체인의 주요 이점 중 하나는 관련된 모든 당사자의 동의 없이는 기록된 정보를 변경하기 어렵다는 것입니다. IBM은 각각의 새로운 기록이 고유한 식별 해시를 가진 블록이 된다고 설명합니다. 이 블록을 기록 체인으로 연결하면 블록체인이 형성됩니다. 비트코인 암호화폐는 블록체인 기술을 사용합니다.
블록체인은 검증과 추적이 필요한 다단계 거래의 검증과 추적에 도움이 됩니다. 안전한 거래를 제공하고, 규정 준수 비용을 절감하며, 데이터 전송 처리 속도를 높일 수 있습니다. 블록체인 기술은 계약 관리 및 제품 출처 감사에 도움이 될 수 있습니다. 또한 투표 플랫폼과 소유권 및 증서 관리에도 사용할 수 있습니다.
지난 5월에 발표된 퓨 Pew Research Center study에 따르면 정부에 대한 미국인의 신뢰도가 사상 최저치를 기록했다고 합니다. 미국인의 약 4분의 1만이 워싱턴 정부가 "거의 항상"(2%) 또는 "대부분의 경우"(22%) 옳은 일을 할 것이라고 신뢰할 수 있다고 답했습니다. 미국인의 18%만이 정부가 항상 옳은 일을 할 것이라고 믿을 수 있다고 답했습니다.
Booz Allen Hamilton 컨설팅 회사는 탈중앙화를 통해 투명성을 제공하고 참여 이해관계자가 데이터를 보고 검증할 수 있기 때문에 정부가 블록체인 기반 애플리케이션의 이점을 누릴 수 있다고 설명했습니다. 또한 blockchain은 정부의 주장에 대한 독립적인 검증을 가능하게 할 수 있습니다. 이 회사는 스웨덴, 에스토니아, 조지아에서 블록체인 기반 토지 등록부를 실험하고 있으며, 이는 재산 분쟁을 신속하게 해결하거나 예방하는 데 도움이 될 수 있다고 썼습니다.
블록체인 보안
digital transformation의 부정적인 측면 중 하나는 개인 데이터 도난이 증가하고 있다는 점입니다. 정부 데이터베이스는 사이버 해커들의 표적이 되고 있습니다. 2017년 에퀴팩스 데이터베이스 유출 사건과 같이 데이터베이스 해킹으로 인해 수백만 명의 미국인의 이름, 사회보장번호, 생년월일, 주소, 운전면허 번호가 노출된 사례가 있습니다. 부즈 앨런 해밀턴은 블록체인 데이터 구조가 단일 실패 지점 위험을 줄임으로써 네트워크 보안을 강화하여 데이터베이스 유출을 어렵게 만든다고 말했습니다.
미국 국토안보부는 온라인 신원 및 인터넷 액세스 관리와 같은 데이터 보안에 대한 블록체인 접근 방식을 연구하고 있습니다. McKinsey는 이 기술이 시민 문서의 해시값을 블록체인에 저장하여 정부가 필요할 때 이러한 문서의 검증 가능한 전자 버전을 제공할 수 있다고 말했습니다.
정부의 책임성 강화
특정 애플리케이션에서 블록체인은 정부 중복성을 줄이고, 프로세스를 간소화하며, 감사 부담을 줄이고, 보안을 강화하고, 데이터 무결성을 보장할 수 있습니다. 간소화하기에 적합한 프로세스 중 하나는 공급업체로부터 들어오는 제안서를 관리하는 GSA의 FASTLane 프로세스입니다. 부즈 앨런 해밀턴은 현재 들어오는 제안서를 처리하는 데 40일이 걸린다고 말합니다. 그러나 GSA는 블록체인 솔루션이 10일 안에 처리하는 데 도움이 될 것으로 기대하고 있습니다.
정부 부패 방지
블록체인이 범죄를 예방하지는 못하지만, World Economic Forum(WEF)은 정부 시스템의 취약점을 해결할 수 있는 5가지 활용 사례가 있다고 밝혔습니다.
공공 조달/정부 계약
WEF는 정부 계약이 전 세계적으로 부패 가능성이 가장 큰 정부 지출 분야라고 지적했습니다. 블록체인 기반 프로세스는 거래에 대한 제3자의 감독을 용이하게 하고 자동화된 계약을 통해 객관성과 통일성을 높일 수 있습니다. 또한 거래와 참여자에 대한 투명성과 책임성도 높아질 것입니다. 그러나 배포 방식에 따라 구현에 어려움을 겪을 수도 있습니다. WEF는 블록체인 플랫폼에 접근하고 사용하기 쉬울수록 남용에 더 취약할 수 있다고 지적했습니다. 또한 오프라인 거래가 블록체인 플랫폼 외부에서 계속된다면 블록체인 플랫폼의 부패 방지 잠재력은 제한될 것입니다.
토지 소유권 등록
앞서 언급했듯이 블록체인은 일부 국가에서 토지 소유권 등록의 효율성을 높일 수 있는 방법입니다. WEF는 온두라스와 인도가 블록체인을 사용하여 재산권을 확대하고 부패한 관행이 있는 것으로 알려진 프로세스의 투명성을 강화하기 위해 노력하고 있다고 썼습니다. 블록체인 기반 토지 등기소는 사람들이 자신의 토지 권리를 증명할 수 있는 안전하고 탈중앙화되며 공개적으로 검증 가능하고 불변하는 기록 시스템을 제공할 수 있습니다. 단, 토지 등록부가 없는 국가에서는 블록체인을 사용하기 전에 정보를 구축하고 디지털화해야 한다는 한계가 있습니다.
전자 투표
각국 정부는 선거 보안, 유권자 등록 무결성, 투표 접근성, 투표율에 대한 우려로 인해 블록체인 기반 투표 플랫폼을 고려하고 있습니다. 블록체인의 정보 보안 특성은 선거 조작 문제를 해결하고 투표 접근성을 높이는 데 도움이 될 수 있습니다. WEF는 cyberattacks 및 기타 보안 문제에 대한 블록체인의 취약성이 한계가 될 것이라고 말했습니다.
유익한 기업 소유권 등록
WEF에 따르면, 비밀리에 운영되는 기업은 자금 세탁, 영향력 행사, 정부 투자 조정을 위한 수단이 될 수 있습니다. 블록체인은 이해 상충과 범죄 행위를 추적하는 데 도움이 되는 중앙 레지스트리를 개발할 수 있습니다. 또한 투명성과 공개성을 제공할 수도 있습니다. 그러나 대부분의 국가에서 기업이 직접 수익적 소유권 정보를 유지하도록 요구하지 않기 때문에 몇 가지 한계가 있습니다. 또한 블록체인 기반 레지스트리를 구축하려면 정치인, 변호사, 은행, 대기업의 동의를 얻어야 하므로 일부 지역에서는 큰 부담이 될 수 있습니다.
보조금 지급
여러 기관에 수백만 달러가 지급되는 불투명한 기부금 지급 절차는 비효율과 부패의 온상이 되고 있습니다. 블록체인은 행위자와 관리자의 수를 줄이고, 프로세스를 간소화하며, 검증을 개선할 수 있습니다. WEF는 기술에 익숙하지 않은 사람들이 보조금 지급 절차에서 배제될 수 있다는 한계가 있다고 말했습니다. 또한 수혜자가 보조금을 어떻게 사용하는지에 대해서는 다루지 않을 것입니다.
블록체인은 산업을 어떻게 변화시킬까요?
유니레버, 월마트, 비자 등 여러 산업에서 블록체인 기술을 사용하여 투명성, 보안, 추적성에서 이점을 얻고 있습니다. 블록체인이 제공하는 이점을 고려할 때, 블록체인은 많은 분야에 혁명을 일으키고 재정의할 것입니다.
A blockchain is a distributed database or ledger that is shared among the nodes of a computer network. As a database, a blockchain stores information electronically in digital format. Blockchains are best known for their crucial role in cryptocurrency systems, such as , for maintaining a secure and decentralized record of transactions. The innovation with a blockchain is that it guarantees the fidelity and security of a record of data and generates trust without the need for a trusted third party.
One key difference between a typical database and a blockchain is how the data is structured. A blockchain collects information together in groups, known as , that hold sets of information. Blocks have certain storage capacities and, when filled, are closed and linked to the previously filled block, forming a chain of data known as the blockchain. All new information that follows that freshly added block is compiled into a newly formed block that will then also be added to the chain once filled.
A database usually structures its data into tables, whereas a blockchain, as its name implies, structures its data into chunks (blocks) that are strung together. This data structure inherently makes an irreversible timeline of data when implemented in a decentralized nature. When a block is filled, it is set in stone and becomes a part of this timeline. Each block in the chain is given an exact timestamp when it is added to the chain.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Blockchain is a type of shared database that differs from a typical database in the way that it stores information; blockchains store data in blocks that are then linked together via cryptography.
As new data comes in, it is entered into a fresh block. Once the block is filled with data, it is chained onto the previous block, which makes the data chained together in chronological order.
Different types of information can be stored on a blockchain, but the most common use so far has been as a ledger for transactions.
In Bitcoin’s case, blockchain is used in a decentralized way so that no single person or group has control—rather, all users collectively retain control.
Decentralized blockchains are immutable, which means that the data entered is irreversible. For Bitcoin, this means that transactions are permanently recorded and viewable to anyone.
How Does a Blockchain Work?
The goal of blockchain is to allow digital information to be recorded and distributed, but not edited. In this way, a blockchain is the foundation for immutable ledgers, or records of transactions that cannot be altered, deleted, or destroyed. This is why blockchains are also known as a (DLT).
First proposed as a research project in 1991, the blockchain concept predated its first widespread application in use: Bitcoin, in 2009. In the years since, the use of blockchains has exploded via the creation of various , (DeFi) applications, (NFTs), and .
Transaction Process
Attributes of Cryptocurrency
Blockchain Decentralization
Imagine that a company owns a server farm with 10,000 computers used to maintain a database holding all of its client’s account information. This company owns a warehouse building that contains all of these computers under one roof and has full control of each of these computers and all of the information contained within them. This, however, provides a single point of failure. What happens if the electricity at that location goes out? What if its Internet connection is severed? What if it burns to the ground? What if a bad actor erases everything with a single keystroke? In any case, the data is lost or corrupted.
What a blockchain does is to allow the data held in that database to be spread out among several network nodes at various locations. This not only creates redundancy but also maintains the fidelity of the data stored therein—if somebody tries to alter a record at one instance of the database, the other nodes would not be altered and thus would prevent a bad actor from doing so. If one user tampers with Bitcoin’s record of transactions, all other nodes would cross-reference each other and easily pinpoint the node with the incorrect information. This system helps to establish an exact and transparent order of events. This way, no single node within the network can alter information held within it.
Because of this, the information and history (such as of transactions of a cryptocurrency) are irreversible. Such a record could be a list of transactions (such as with a cryptocurrency), but it also is possible for a blockchain to hold a variety of other information like legal contracts, state identifications, or a company’s product inventory.
To validate new entries or records to a block, a majority of the decentralized network’s computing power would need to agree to it. To prevent bad actors from validating bad transactions or , blockchains are secured by a consensus mechanism such as (PoW) or (PoS). These mechanisms allow for agreement even when no single node is in charge.
Transparency
Because of the decentralized nature of Bitcoin’s blockchain, all transactions can be transparently viewed by either having a personal node or using that allow anyone to see transactions occurring live. Each node has its own copy of the chain that gets updated as fresh blocks are confirmed and added. This means that if you wanted to, you could track Bitcoin wherever it goes.
For example, exchanges have been hacked in the past, where those who kept Bitcoin on the exchange lost everything. While the hacker may be entirely anonymous, the Bitcoins that they extracted are easily traceable. If the Bitcoins stolen in some of these hacks were to be moved or spent somewhere, it would be known.
Of course, the records stored in the Bitcoin blockchain (as well as most others) are encrypted. This means that only the owner of a record can decrypt it to reveal their identity (using a - pair). As a result, users of blockchains can remain anonymous while preserving transparency.
What Is the Blockchain?
Is Blockchain Secure?
Blockchain technology achieves decentralized security and trust in several ways. To begin with, new blocks are always stored linearly and chronologically. That is, they are always added to the “end” of the blockchain. After a block has been added to the end of the blockchain, it is extremely difficult to go back and alter the contents of the block unless a majority of the network has reached a consensus to do so. That’s because each block contains its own , along with the hash of the block before it, as well as the previously mentioned timestamp. Hash codes are created by a that turns digital information into a string of numbers and letters. If that information is edited in any way, then the hash code changes as well.
Let’s say that a hacker, who also runs a node on a blockchain network, wants to alter a blockchain and steal cryptocurrency from everyone else. If they were to alter their own single copy, it would no longer align with everyone else’s copy. When everyone else cross-references their copies against each other, they would see this one copy stand out, and that hacker’s version of the chain would be cast away as illegitimate.
Succeeding with such a hack would require that the hacker simultaneously control and alter 51% or more of the copies of the blockchain so that their new copy becomes the majority copy and, thus, the agreed-upon chain. Such an attack would also require an immense amount of money and resources, as they would need to redo all of the blocks because they would now have different timestamps and hash codes.
Due to the size of many cryptocurrency networks and how fast they are growing, the cost to pull off such a feat probably would be insurmountable. This would be not only extremely expensive but also likely fruitless. Doing such a thing would not go unnoticed, as network members would see such drastic alterations to the blockchain. The network members would then off to a new version of the chain that has not been affected. This would cause the attacked version of the token to plummet in value, making the attack ultimately pointless, as the bad actor has control of a worthless asset. The same would occur if the bad actor were to attack the new fork of Bitcoin. It is built this way so that taking part in the network is far more economically incentivized than attacking it.
Bitcoin vs. Blockchain
Blockchain technology was first outlined in 1991 by Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta, two researchers who wanted to implement a system where document timestamps could not be tampered with. But it wasn’t until almost two decades later, with the launch of Bitcoin in January 2009, that blockchain had its first real-world application.1
The Bitcoin protocol is built on a blockchain. In a research paper introducing the digital currency, Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, , referred to it as “a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party.”2
The key thing to understand here is that Bitcoin merely uses blockchain as a means to transparently record a ledger of payments, but blockchain can, in theory, be used to immutably record any number of data points. As discussed above, this could be in the form of transactions, votes in an election, product inventories, state identifications, deeds to homes, and much more.
Currently, tens of thousands of projects are looking to implement blockchains in a variety of ways to help society other than just recording transactions—for example, as a way to vote securely in democratic elections. The nature of blockchain’s immutability means that fraudulent voting would become far more difficult to occur. For example, a voting system could work such that each citizen of a country would be issued a single cryptocurrency or token. Each candidate would then be given a specific wallet address, and the voters would send their token or crypto to the address of whichever candidate for whom they wish to vote. The transparent and traceable nature of blockchain would eliminate both the need for human vote counting and the ability of bad actors to tamper with physical ballots.
Blockchain vs. Banks
Blockchains have been heralded as being a disruptive force to the finance sector, and especially with the functions of payments and banking. However, banks and decentralized blockchains are vastly different.
To see how a bank differs from blockchain, let’s compare the banking system to Bitcoin’s implementation of blockchain.
How Are Blockchains Used?
As we now know, blocks on Bitcoin’s blockchain store data about monetary transactions. Today, there are more than 10,000 other cryptocurrency systems running on blockchain. But it turns out that blockchain is actually a reliable way of storing data about other types of transactions as well.
Some companies that have already incorporated blockchain include Walmart, Pfizer, AIG, Siemens, Unilever, and a host of others. For example, IBM has created its Food Trust blockchain to trace the journey that food products take to get to their locations.3
Why do this? The food industry has seen countless outbreaks of E. coli, salmonella, and listeria, as well as hazardous materials being accidentally introduced to foods. In the past, it has taken weeks to find the source of these outbreaks or the cause of sickness from what people are eating. Using blockchain gives brands the ability to track a food product’s route from its origin, through each stop it makes, and finally, its delivery. If a food is found to be contaminated, then it can be traced all the way back through each stop to its origin. Not only that, but these companies can also now see everything else it may have come in contact with, allowing the identification of the problem to occur far sooner and potentially saving lives. This is one example of blockchain in practice, but there are many other forms of blockchain implementation.
Banking and Finance
Perhaps no industry stands to benefit from integrating blockchain into its business operations more than banking. Financial institutions only operate during business hours, usually five days a week. That means if you try to deposit a check on Friday at 6 p.m., you will likely have to wait until Monday morning to see that money hit your account. Even if you do make your deposit during business hours, the transaction can still take one to three days to verify due to the sheer volume of transactions that banks need to settle. Blockchain, on the other hand, never sleeps.
By integrating blockchain into banks, consumers can see their transactions processed in as little as 10 minutes—basically the time it takes to add a block to the blockchain, regardless of holidays or the time of day or week. With blockchain, banks also have the opportunity to exchange funds between institutions more quickly and securely. In the stock trading business, for example, the settlement and clearing process can take up to three days (or longer, if trading internationally), meaning that the money and shares are frozen for that period of time.
Given the size of the sums involved, even the few days that the money is in transit can carry significant costs and risks for banks.
Currency
Blockchain forms the bedrock for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. The U.S. dollar is controlled by the Federal Reserve. Under this central authority system, a user’s data and currency are technically at the whim of their bank or government. If a user’s bank is hacked, the client’s private information is at risk. If the client’s bank collapses or the client lives in a country with an unstable government, the value of their currency may be at risk. In 2008, several failing banks were bailed out—partially using taxpayer money. These are the worries out of which Bitcoin was first conceived and developed.
By spreading its operations across a network of computers, blockchain allows Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to operate without the need for a central authority. This not only reduces risk but also eliminates many of the processing and transaction fees. It can also give those in countries with unstable currencies or financial infrastructures a more stable currency with more applications and a wider network of individuals and institutions with whom they can do business, both domestically and internationally.
Using for savings accounts or as a means of payment is especially profound for those who have no state identification. Some countries may be war-torn or have governments that lack any real infrastructure to provide identification. Citizens of such countries may not have access to savings or brokerage accounts—and, therefore, no way to safely store wealth.
Healthcare
Healthcare providers can leverage blockchain to securely store their patients’ medical records. When a medical record is generated and signed, it can be written into the blockchain, which provides patients with the proof and confidence that the record cannot be changed. These personal health records could be encoded and stored on the blockchain with a private key, so that they are only accessible by certain individuals, thereby ensuring privacy.
Property Records
If you have ever spent time in your local Recorder’s Office, you will know that the process of recording property rights is both burdensome and inefficient. Today, a physical deed must be delivered to a government employee at the local recording office, where it is manually entered into the county’s central database and public index. In the case of a property dispute, claims to the property must be reconciled with the public index.
This process is not just costly and time-consuming—it is also prone to human error, where each inaccuracy makes tracking property ownership less efficient. Blockchain has the potential to eliminate the need for scanning documents and tracking down physical files in a local recording office. If property ownership is stored and verified on the blockchain, owners can trust that their deed is accurate and permanently recorded.
In war-torn countries or areas that have little to no government or financial infrastructure, and certainly no Recorder’s Office, it can be nearly impossible to prove ownership of a property. If a group of people living in such an area is able to leverage blockchain, then transparent and clear time lines of property ownership could be established.
Smart Contracts
A smart contract is a computer code that can be built into the blockchain to facilitate, verify, or negotiate a contract agreement. Smart contracts operate under a set of conditions to which users agree. When those conditions are met, the terms of the agreement are automatically carried out.
Say, for example, that a potential tenant would like to lease an apartment using a smart contract. The landlord agrees to give the tenant the door code to the apartment as soon as the tenant pays the security deposit. Both the tenant and the landlord would send their respective portions of the deal to the smart contract, which would hold onto and automatically exchange the door code for the security deposit on the date when the lease begins. If the landlord doesn’t supply the door code by the lease date, then the smart contract refunds the security deposit. This would eliminate the fees and processes typically associated with the use of a notary, a third-party mediator, or attorneys.
Supply Chains
As in the IBM Food Trust example, suppliers can use blockchain to record the origins of materials that they have purchased. This would allow companies to verify the authenticity of not only their products but also common labels such as “Organic,” “Local,” and “Fair Trade.”
As reported by Forbes, the food industry is increasingly adopting the use of blockchain to track the path and safety of food throughout the farm-to-user journey.4
Voting
As mentioned above, blockchain could be used to facilitate a modern voting system. Voting with blockchain carries the potential to eliminate election fraud and boost voter turnout, as was tested in the November 2018 midterm elections in West Virginia.5 Using blockchain in this way would make votes nearly impossible to tamper with. The blockchain protocol would also maintain transparency in the electoral process, reducing the personnel needed to conduct an election and providing officials with nearly instant results. This would eliminate the need for recounts or any real concern that fraud might threaten the election.
Pros and Cons of Blockchain
For all of its complexity, blockchain’s potential as a decentralized form of record-keeping is almost without limit. From greater user privacy and heightened security to lower processing fees and fewer errors, blockchain technology may very well see applications beyond those outlined above. But there are also some disadvantages.
Pros
Improved accuracy by removing human involvement in verification
Cost reductions by eliminating third-party verification
Decentralization makes it harder to tamper with
Transactions are secure, private, and efficient
Transparent technology
Provides a banking alternative and a way to secure personal information for citizens of countries with unstable or underdeveloped governments
Cons
Significant technology cost associated with mining bitcoin
Low transactions per second
History of use in illicit activities, such as on the dark web
Regulation varies by jurisdiction and remains uncertain
Data storage limitations
Benefits of Blockchains
Accuracy of the Chain
Transactions on the blockchain network are approved by a network of thousands of computers. This removes almost all human involvement in the verification process, resulting in less human error and an accurate record of information. Even if a computer on the network were to make a computational mistake, the error would only be made to one copy of the blockchain. For that error to spread to the rest of the blockchain, it would need to be made by —a near impossibility for a large and growing network the size of Bitcoin’s.6
Cost Reductions
Typically, consumers pay a bank to verify a transaction, a notary to sign a document, or a minister to perform a marriage. Blockchain eliminates the need for third-party verification—and, with it, their associated costs. For example, business owners incur a small fee whenever they accept payments using credit cards, because banks and payment-processing companies have to process those transactions. Bitcoin, on the other hand, does not have a central authority and has limited transaction fees.
Decentralization
Blockchain does not store any of its information in a central location. Instead, the blockchain is copied and spread across a network of computers. Whenever a new block is added to the blockchain, every computer on the network updates its blockchain to reflect the change. By spreading that information across a network, rather than storing it in one central database, blockchain becomes more difficult to tamper with. If a copy of the blockchain fell into the hands of a hacker, only a single copy of the information, rather than the entire network, would be compromised.
Efficient Transactions
Transactions placed through a central authority can take up to a few days to settle. If you attempt to deposit a check on Friday evening, for example, you may not actually see funds in your account until Monday morning. Whereas financial institutions operate during business hours, usually five days a week, blockchain is working 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year. Transactions can be completed in as little as 10 minutes and can be considered secure after just a few hours. This is particularly useful for trades, which usually take much longer because of time zone issues and the fact that all parties must confirm payment processing.
Private Transactions
Many blockchain networks operate as public databases, meaning that anyone with an Internet connection can view a list of the network’s transaction history. Although users can access details about transactions, they cannot access identifying information about the users making those transactions. It is a common misperception that blockchain networks like bitcoin are anonymous, when in fact they are only confidential.
When a user makes a public transaction, their unique code—called a public key, as mentioned earlier—is recorded on the blockchain. Their personal information is not. If a person has made a Bitcoin purchase on an exchange that requires identification, then the person’s identity is still linked to their blockchain address—but a transaction, even when tied to a person’s name, does not reveal any personal information.
Secure Transactions
Once a transaction is recorded, its authenticity must be verified by the blockchain network. Thousands of computers on the blockchain rush to confirm that the details of the purchase are correct. After a computer has validated the transaction, it is added to the blockchain block. Each block on the blockchain contains its own unique hash, along with the unique hash of the block before it. When the information on a block is edited in any way, that block’s hash code changes—however, the hash code on the block after it would not. This discrepancy makes it extremely difficult for information on the blockchain to be changed without notice.
Transparency
Most blockchains are entirely open-source software. This means that anyone and everyone can view its code. This gives auditors the ability to review cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin for security. This also means that there is no real authority on who controls Bitcoin’s code or how it is edited. Because of this, anyone can suggest changes or upgrades to the system. If a majority of the network users agree that the new version of the code with the upgrade is sound and worthwhile, then Bitcoin can be updated.
Banking the Unbanked
Perhaps the most profound facet of blockchain and Bitcoin is the ability for anyone, regardless of ethnicity, gender, or cultural background, to use it. According to The World Bank, an estimated 1.7 billion adults do not have bank accounts or any means of storing their money or wealth.7 Nearly all of these individuals live in developing countries, where the economy is in its infancy and entirely dependent on cash.
These people often earn a little money that is paid in physical cash. They then need to store this physical cash in hidden locations in their homes or other places of living, leaving them subject to robbery or unnecessary violence. Keys to a bitcoin wallet can be stored on a piece of paper, a cheap cell phone, or even memorized if necessary. For most people, it is likely that these options are more easily hidden than a small pile of cash under a mattress.
Blockchains of the future are also looking for solutions to not only be a unit of account for wealth storage but also to store medical records, property rights, and a variety of other legal contracts.
Drawbacks of Blockchains
Technology Cost
Although blockchain can save users money on transaction fees, the technology is far from free. For example, the PoW system which the bitcoin network uses to validate transactions, consumes vast amounts of computational power. In the real world, the power from the millions of computers on the bitcoin network is close to what Norway and Ukraine consume annually.8
Despite the costs of mining bitcoin, users continue to drive up their electricity bills to validate transactions on the blockchain. That’s because when add a block to the bitcoin blockchain, they are rewarded with enough bitcoin to make their time and energy worthwhile. When it comes to blockchains that do not use cryptocurrency, however, miners will need to be paid or otherwise incentivized to validate transactions.
Some solutions to these issues are beginning to arise. For example, bitcoin-mining farms have been set up to use solar power, excess natural gas from fracking sites, or power from wind farms.
Speed and Data Inefficiency
Bitcoin is a perfect case study for the possible inefficiencies of blockchain. Bitcoin’s PoW system takes about 10 minutes to add a new block to the blockchain.9 At that rate, it’s estimated that the blockchain network can only manage about seven transactions per second (TPS). Although other cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum perform better than bitcoin, they are still limited by blockchain. Legacy brand Visa, for context, can process 65,000 TPS.10
Solutions to this issue have been in development for years. There are currently blockchains that are boasting more than 30,000 TPS.11 Ethereum's merge between its main net and beacon chain (Sep. 15, 2022) is predicted to allow up to 100,000 TPS after it rolls out an upgrade that includes sharding—a splitting of the database so that more devices (phones, tablets, and laptops) can run Ethereum. This will increase the network participation, reduce congestion, and increase transaction speeds.12
The other issue is that each block can only hold so much data. The has been, and continues to be, one of the most pressing issues for the scalability of blockchains going forward.
Illegal Activity
While confidentiality on the blockchain network protects users from hacks and preserves privacy, it also allows for illegal trading and activity on the blockchain network. The most cited example of blockchain being used for illicit transactions is probably the , an online dark web illegal-drug and money laundering marketplace operating from February 2011 until October 2013, when it was shut down by the FBI.13
The allows users to buy and sell illegal goods without being tracked by using the and make illegal purchases in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Current U.S. regulations require financial service providers to obtain information about their customers when they open an account, verify the identity of each customer, and confirm that customers do not appear on any list of known or suspected terrorist organizations.14 This system can be seen as both a pro and a con. It gives anyone access to financial accounts but also allows criminals to more easily transact. Many have argued that the good uses of crypto, like banking the unbanked world, outweigh the bad uses of cryptocurrency, especially when most illegal activity is still accomplished through untraceable cash.
While Bitcoin had been used early on for such purposes, its transparent nature and maturity as a financial asset has actually seen illegal activity migrate to other cryptocurrencies such as Monero and Dash.15 Today, illegal activity accounts for only a very small fraction of all .16
Regulation
Many in the crypto space have expressed concerns about government regulation over cryptocurrencies. While it is getting increasingly difficult and near impossible to end something like Bitcoin as its decentralized network grows, governments could theoretically make it illegal to own cryptocurrencies or participate in their networks.
This concern has grown smaller over time, as large companies like PayPal begin to allow the ownership and use of cryptocurrencies on its platform.
What Is a Blockchain in Simple Terms?
Simply put, a blockchain is a shared database or ledger. Pieces of data are stored in data structures known as blocks, and each node of the network has an exact replica of the entire database. Security is ensured since if somebody tries to edit or delete an entry in one copy of the ledger, the majority will not reflect this change and it will be rejected.
How Many Blockchains Are There?
The number of live blockchains is growing every day at an ever-increasing pace. As of 2022, there are more than 10,000 active cryptocurrencies based on blockchain, with several hundred more non-cryptocurrency blockchains.17
What’s the Difference Between a Private Blockchain and a Public Blockchain?
A public blockchain, also known as an open or permissionless blockchain, is one where anybody can join the network freely and establish a node. Because of their open nature, these blockchains must be secured with cryptography and a consensus system like proof of work (PoW).
A private or permissioned blockchain, on the other hand, requires each node to be approved before joining. Because nodes are considered to be trusted, the layers of security do not need to be as robust.
What Is a Blockchain Platform?
A blockchain platform allows users and developers to create novel uses on top of an existing blockchain infrastructure. One example is , which has a native cryptocurrency known as (ETH).18 But the Ethereum blockchain also allows the creation of smart contracts and programmable tokens used in (ICOs), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). These are all built up around the Ethereum infrastructure and secured by nodes on the Ethereum network.
Who Invented Blockchain?
Blockchain technology was first outlined in 1991 by Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta, two mathematicians who wanted to implement a system where document timestamps could not be tampered with.1 In the late 1990s, Cypherpunk proposed using a blockchain to secure a digital payments system, known as (which was never implemented).19
The Bottom Line
With many practical applications for the technology already being implemented and explored, blockchain is finally making a name for itself in no small part because of bitcoin and cryptocurrency. As a buzzword on the tongue of every investor in the nation, blockchain stands to make business and government operations more accurate, efficient, secure, and cheap, with fewer middlemen.
As we prepare to head into the third decade of blockchain, it’s no longer a question of if legacy companies will catch on to the technology—it’s a question of when. Today, we see a proliferation of NFTs and the tokenization of assets. The next decades will prove to be an important period of growth for blockchain.
블록체인 개발자는 소프트웨어 개발 업계에서 가장 높은 급여를 받습니다. 블록체인 기업가는 벤처캐피탈 투자와 보조금 지원을 모두 받을 수 있습니다. 그러나 기술의 진정한 목적은 계약을 혁신하고 인터넷에서 비즈니스를 민주화하며 신뢰의 기능을 재구성할 수 있는 잠재력에 있습니다.
블록체인의 탁월함은 탈중앙화 특성에 있습니다. 블록체인은 레거시 데이터베이스처럼 중앙 위치에 존재하지 않는 데이터베이스로 생각할 수 있습니다. 블록체인은 전 세계 많은 컴퓨터에서 공유되므로 거래 및 계정 잔액과 같은 정보를 확인하기 쉽고 한 사용자가 변경하는 것이 거의 불가능합니다.
데이터를 분산함으로써 우리는 더 이상 경제 활동을 수행하기 위해 중앙 집중식 중개자에 대한 신뢰에 의존하지 않습니다. 예를 들어, 은행과 같은 전통적인 중앙 집중식 기관은 고객이 원할 때 언제든지 돈을 인출할 수 있다고 말할 수 있지만 모든 고객이 동시에 그렇게 하기로 결정하면 은행은 준수할 수 없습니다. 요구. 반대로 특정 수의 토큰이 블록체인의 특정 주소에 할당되면 사용자는 동시에 토큰을 전송하기 위해 트랜잭션을 수행할 수 있으며 블록체인은 이를 기꺼이 준수합니다. 이는 블록체인이 암호화, 수학, 물리학 및 공개 분산 원장에 의해 보호되고 관리되기 때문입니다.
블록체인 기술이 왜 그렇게 중요한가요?
블록체인의 고유한 아키텍처 덕분에 블록체인을 기반으로 신뢰가 필요 없는 시스템을 구축할 수 있습니다. 사용자는 은행과 같은 중앙화된 기관에 의존하여 결정을 내리고 거래를 진행할 필요가 없습니다. 시스템이 탈중앙화되어 있기 때문에 사용자는 임의의 이유로 거래가 거부되지 않을 것임을 알 수 있습니다.
탈중앙화를 통해 파라메트릭 보험,탈중앙화 금융(DeFi), 탈중앙화 조직(DAO) 등 이전에는 불가능했던 사용 사례를 실현할 수 있습니다. 블록체인을 통해 개발자는 허가를 요청하거나 신청, 승인, 관료적 절차를 거치지 않고도 즉각적인 가치를 제공하는 소프트웨어를 구축하고 배포할 수 있습니다. 개발자는 스마트 컨트랙트에 코드를 배포할 수 있으며, 사용자는 애플리케이션의 기능을 바로 활용할 수 있습니다.
왜 블록체인 개발을 배워야 합니까?
많은 기업이 초기 연구 단계에 불과하더라도 블록체인 개발에 투자하고 있습니다. 최근PWC의 연구에 따르면 소프트웨어를 개발하는 기업의 77%가 어떤 형태로든 블록체인과 관련되어 있다고 합니다. 이는 해당 분야의 일자리에 대한 높은 수요를 의미합니다. 같은 연구에 따르면 향후 몇 년 동안 블록체인 개발자에 대한 수요가 6000% 증가할 것으로 예상됩니다.
블록체인 개발자가 되면 수익 잠재력이 높아질 가능성이 높습니다(현재미국의 블록체인 개발자 평균 연봉은 약 20만 3천 달러입니다). 더 중요한 것은 우리 시대의 가장 중요한 기술 혁명에 참여할 수 있다는 것입니다. 블록체인은 최종 사용자에게 동등한 액세스를 제공하고, 더 공정한 미래를 만들며, 사회의 전반적인 개선에 기여합니다.
마지막으로, 블록체인 공간은 블록체인 개발자가 활용할 수 있는 투자 기회로 가득합니다.VC 투자를 받아 회사를 창업하는 것부터 기존 회사에 아이디어나 프로젝트를 기부하는보조금 프로그램기금에 참여하는 것까지 기회는 무궁무진합니다.
