<ul><li>The internet is a powerful tool for communication, but it lacks the security necessary to conduct big transactions. However, there’s a new technology that might change this perception of the internet in the future.</li><li>Blockchain technology is a way of managing transactions. It makes it possible for people to bypass traditional banking authorities by making all transactions transparent and decentralized so that everyone involved can see what’s happening with the database.</li><li>Blockchain is a system of verification that makes it impossible for hackers to make changes without being noticed. It also does<warningtag>n’t allow old entries to be changed, since no one entity controls the blockchain.</warningtag></li></ul>

Internet and security

“Privacy is the foundation of free societies.”

“ I’m a big believer in the ability of blockchain technology to effect fundamental change in the infrastructure of the financial service industry.” Bob Greifeld, CEO of NASDAQ

“Creating a complete picture of a company financial health, by looking at periodic financial statements, is like turning a hamburger into a cow”

“Sort of the ultimate Tamagotchi, the blockchain is a globally distributed nest egg.”

However, it took a while for people to realize how useful it was. Similarly, Bitcoin is the currency that will power blockchain technology in this century.But before you can understand its usefulness, you need to know how to use it and earn your first bitcoins.

The internet is the backbone of our modern world

“Let the code speak for itself.”

You might be skeptical of a seller who refuses to use banks or notaries, and for good reason. Banks have long served as the middleman between buyers and sellers by authenticating transactions and ensuring that property titles are correct. However, there’s no guarantee that the bank itself is trustworthy. Banks can go bankrupt and lose money by making bad deals, companies like Uber sell customer data without getting consent from customers, and governments are capable of going bankrupt themselves.

Trusting banks

“Governments that wish to repress the voices of citizens everywhere and have captured technologies like the Internet to silence dissidents and block outside media will find blockchain technology significantly more challenging.”

“We believe that blockchain technology could be an important tool for protecting and preserving humanity and the rights of every human being, a means of communicating the truth, distributing prosperity, and—as the network rejects the fraudulent transactions—of rejecting those early cancerous cells from a society that can grow into the unthinkable.”

One of the biggest challenges to the adoption of blockchain technology is education.It is a highly technical topic that one cannot fully learn and understand in one briefing, meeting or discussion. It truly takes a concerted study.

Challenges in adopting blockchain

“Every cultural industry is up for disruption, and the promise is that creators get fully compensated for the value they create.”

The first, foundational book on blockchain technology, from the bestselling author of Wikinomics Don Tapscott and blockchain expert Alex Tapscott, now in paperback with a new preface and chapter explaining recent developments in the world of blockchain, including cryptoassets, ICOs, smart contracts, and more. “This book has had an enormous impact on the evolution of blockchain in the world.” —Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft Corporation In this revelatory book, Don and Alex Tapscott bring us a brilliantly researched, highly readable, and essential book about the technology driving the future of the economy. Blockchain is the ingeniously simple, revolution­ary protocol that allows transactions to be simultaneously anonymous and secure by maintaining a tamperproof public ledger of value. Though it’s best known as the technology that drives bitcoin and other digital cur­rencies, it also has the potential to go far beyond currency, to record virtually everything of value to humankind, from birth and death certifi­cates to insurance claims, land titles, and even votes. As with major paradigm shifts that preceded it, blockchain technology will create winners and losers. This book shines a light on where it can lead us in the next decade and beyond.

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Cryptocurrency

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Money & Investments

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Technology & The Future

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Books

The first, foundational book on blockchain technology, from the bestselling author of Wikinomics Don Tapscott and blockchain expert Alex Tapscott, now in paperback with a new preface and chapter explaining recent developments in the world of blockchain, including cryptoassets, ICOs, smart contracts, and more.   “This book has had an enormous impact on the evolution of blockchain in the world.” —Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft Corporation In this revelatory book, Don and Alex Tapscott bring us a brilliantly researched, highly readable, and essential book about the technology driving the future of the economy.    Blockchain is the ingeniously simple, revolution­ary protocol that allows transactions to be simultaneously anonymous and secure by maintaining a tamperproof public ledger of value. Though it’s best known as the technology that drives bitcoin and other digital cur­rencies, it also has the potential to go far beyond currency, to record virtually everything of value to humankind, from birth and death certifi­cates to insurance claims, land titles, and even votes.    As with major paradigm shifts that preceded it, blockchain technology will create winners and losers. This book shines a light on where it can lead us in the next decade and beyond.

Don Tapscott is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Don Tapscott has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Don Tapscott's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Don Tapscott

Alex Tapscott is the CEO of NextBlock Global a digital asset company. Previously, he worked for seven years in investment banking in New York and Toronto.

Alex Tapscott

Blockchain Revolution

Introduced in 2008, blockchain is a system which records <a href="https://blockchain.works-hub.com/learn/How-Blockchain-is-Changing-Cross-Border-Payments">cross-border digital transactions</a> made in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies across numerous PCs that are connected in a peer-to-peer network. In other words, a blockchain is a fast and secure way to buy and sell digital assets. The best part about a blockchain is that it provides <a href="https://blockchain.works-hub.com/learn/blockchain-technology-for-logistics-learn-about-its-impact-87876">supply chain visibility to suppliers and retailers</a>. Moreover, blockchain systems are decentralized and implemented with open source software, in the sense that no government body regulates them.

Blockchain: The Premise

Blockchain technology had seen a significant rise in institutional investments in 2021 leading to its tremendous growth. Last year alone, we saw credit card companies partner with blockchain companies to offer Bitcoin rewards. In January, Visa <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/select/visa-backs-first-credit-card-to-offer-bitcoin-rewards/">partnered with BlockFi</a>, and in April, Mastercard <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/mastercard-digital-currency-exchange-gemini-launch-crypto-rewards-credit-card-2021-04-27/">partnered with digital currency exchange Gemini</a>.

The Growth Of Blockchain

Synthetix allows developers to <a href="https://www.gemini.com/cryptopedia/synthetix">issue synthetic assets</a> on the Ethereum blockchain. This is a compelling concept as you can transform any asset into a tradable asset while removing its potential restrictions.Synthetix has opened up many new use cases for traders seeking new financial instruments. It wasn’t possible to employ trading bots for many traditional financial products to give you a concrete example. When trading synthetic assets, this becomes possible. The Synthetix platform brings non-blockchain-based asset exposure to the crypto ecosystem.

Synthetix - Trade Synthetic Assets

Argo is a publicly-traded blockchain technology company based in London, United Kingdom. Known for large-scale cryptocurrency mining. Argo Blockchain is the only blockchain company listed on the London Stock Exchange. The company was established in 2017 by Mike Edwards and Peter Wall with the sole aim of making mining a legitimate operation. In 2020, Agro Blockchain earned a revenue of $18.96 million.

Argo Blockchain - Large-scale Cryptocurrency Mining

The aim of introducing blockchain was to replace banks with software and it is said to be initiated by “Satoshi Nakamoto” by launching a project called “bitcoin.” Each blockchain user is called a node and a node in the blockchain technology market initiates a digital transaction using its private key. The private key generates a unique digital signature and makes sure that no one can change it. Once done, the transaction gets broadcast to the verifying nodes.

The Mysterious Founder

The blockchain platform can use different methods to verify the validity of the transaction. If the transaction is found to be authentic, it will get a place in the ledger. It is believed that blockchain has the potential to revamp the stock market. Also, many organizations and banks have incorporated blockchain into their businesses.

The Blockchain Transaction

Seeing the growth of blockchain and its growth potential, it would be interesting to learn which are the top blockchain companies to watch in 2022.Companies that have proven to contribute significant value to the blockchain space and improve the maturity and professionalization of the industry by offering effective blockchain solutions. List of top Blockchain Companies:<ul><li>Binance</li><li>Coinbase</li><li>Chorus One</li><li>Synthetix</li><li>Chainlink</li><li>Gemini</li><li>Circle</li><li>Steem</li><li>Argo Blockchain</li><li>Hive</li></ul>

Top Blockchain Companies

Coinbase was founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong (former engineer at Airbnb) and Fred Ehrsam (trader at Goldman Sachs). They wanted to provide users with an easy-to-use portal to buy and transact cryptocurrencies. At the time, Coinbase has become the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US and succeeded in its mission.Coinbase estimated total revenue of $1.8 billion during 2021’s first quarter to give you some financial details about its magnitude. On top of that, the crypto exchange caters to 56 million verified crypto users.

Coinbase - Crypto Exchange

<a href="https://chain.link/">Chainlink</a> created the concept of decentralized oracles that make off-chain data available to smart contracts in a deterministic way. To get back to the temperature example, let’s assume we have ten nodes that request temperature data from different data providers. Then, we calculate the average temperature, and we write this number via a transaction to the blockchain. Now, our gambling smart contract can access the temperature data and execute its logic without leaving the blockchain ecosystem.

Chainlink - Decentralized Oracle Network

Gemini is a crypto exchange founded by the famous Winklevoss twins in 2014. It’s a private exchange that also offers <a href="https://www.gemini.com/custody">custodian services</a>. The name Gemini refers to the Latin word for twins. The Winklevoss brothers have the vision of marrying both forms of money: fiat money and cryptocurrencies. They do this by offering various trading pairs where they map a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin against a fiat currency like the US Dollar (BTC/USD).

Gemini - Bitcoin Exchange and Custodian

Circle brands itself as the payment infrastructure for internet businesses and are active in the crypto space since 2013. They are the company behind the popular <a href="https://www.circle.com/en/usdc">stablecoin USDC</a>, with a market cap of $11,241,731,453. The USDC stablecoin has its value “pegged” against one US Dollar. It means that Circle holds $1 in collateral for every USDC token they issue. It’s one of the most widely adopted stablecoins besides Tether (USDT).

Circle - Stablecoin USDC

Steem is a blockchain company providing services to social media users, developers and entrepreneurs. Founded in 2016 by Ned Scott and Daniel Larimer, the company launched the Steemit social media platform as its first application built upon the Steemit blockchain. On Steemit, anyone can earn rewards by posting quality content, upvoting and investing in Steem-based currencies.

Steem - A Social Blockchain

Chorus One has established itself as one of the most trustworthy and professional staking and validator services in the blockchain space. They’ve proven that you can run a viable staking business. At the moment, users have trusted $1,659,144,530 worth of assets staked with Chorus One.They also support a massive list of proof-of-stake networks.

Chorus One - Staking And Validation

Binance is the world’s leading digital currency exchange platform. The company provides a platform to exchange cryptocurrencies while taking care of liquidity and security. Founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao and Yi He, Binance is now one of the largest companies dealing in digital technology and finance with headquarters in George Town, Cayman Islands, Malta and various other locations globally.

Binance - Crypto Exchange

Hive Blockchain Technologies Ltd. is a crypto mining blockchain company that claims to use renewable energy for mining Bitcoin and Ethereum. The company is jointly funded by Genesis Mining and Fiore Group to provide robust blockchain solutions and accelerate the development of the blockchain sector through traditional capital markets and develop the leading listed blockchain infrastructure company.Founded in 2013 by Olivier Roussy Newton, Hive Blockchain Technologies Ltd. is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. In 2020, the company earned $33 billion in revenue, for a $9 billion annual growth.

Hive - Renewable Energy for Mining Bitcoin and Ethereum

\##Blockchain OverviewIntroduced in 2008, blockchain is a system which records cross border digital transactions made in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies  across numerous PCs that are connected in a peer-to-peer network. In other words, a blockchain is a fast and secure way to buy and sell digital assets. The best...

Top Blockchain Companies in 2022

Once you have a wallet set up, connect it with the NFT marketplace you want to use. <ul><li>With OpenSea and Rarible, click the create button in the top left which will ask you to connect your wallet. You will be presented with a list of compatible wallets you can choose from.</li><li>If you installed a Metamark or Coinbase extension, a popup will ask you if you want to connect your wallet.</li></ul> Caution: Think twice if an unknown site asks to connect to your wallet, as many scammers could try to access your funds or NFTs.

Connect your wallet

Wallets are applications you use to store your cryptocurrencies and any NFTs you end up minting or buying. Use a wallet that is compatible with the blockchain you're using.<ul><li>MetaMask's wallet is widely supported by Ethereum-based applications like OpenSea, Foundation, etc. </li><li>Coinbase has its own wallet you can use as an extension or an app and is supported by most platforms.</li></ul>Once you have the browser extension or app installed, click on "create new wallet", then create a username and password. They will give you a "seed phrase", which is 12 random words. Without it, you can't recover your account.

Set up a wallet

<ul><li>Rarible lets you sell NFTs using the Flow blockchain if you sign up for it using the Blocto wallet. However, choosing to use Flow on Rarible will limit you to single edition NFTs. You can't sell them with an auction.</li><li>OpenSea will let you sell using the Polygon blockchain.</li></ul>When you use non-Ethereum blockchains like Flow or Polygon, people can't use Ethereum to purchase your NFTs without added gas fees. This may put some collectors off.

Alternatives to Ethereum

<ul><li>Transaction fees. Some platforms will let you create NFTs for free, but selling them has other demands.</li><li>Most NFTs are sold on the Ethereum blockchain, and every transaction on the Ethereum blockchain costs fees.</li><li>The fees, called "gas", are paid to the miners. Nearly everything you do on the blockchain will cost gas. While most transactions will go through, paying gas does not always guarantee your transfer will go through. </li><li>The most popular NFT marketplaces mostly run on the Ethereum blockchain, which uses an energy-intensive "proof of work" system.</li></ul>

Considerations when deciding to sell an NFT

<ol><li>You will be asked whether you want to create a single- or a multiple-edition NFT.</li><li>Next, upload the digital file using the Choose File button. It will eventually end up on the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS),  a decentralised way to store media.</li><li>Set your selling options - "fixed price", "open for bids", or "timed auction."</li><li>Add unlockable content (optional).</li><li>Choose your collection.</li><li>Decide if you want the Free Minting option. If you turn it off and use Ethereum, you'll have to pay a gas fee.</li><li>Give your NFT a title and description.</li><li>Click the Create button, and complete the next series of actions.</li></ol>

Listing an NFT on Rarible

<ul><li>NFT's  (non-fungible tokens) are digital tokens that are stored on a blockchain.</li><li>In cryptocurrencies, each coin is the same, whereas, each NFT is unique. NFTs can be sold as a way to prove ownership of a digital file.</li><li>The files are not stored on the blockchain. Instead, a link to the file is stored along with the token that acts as proof of ownership.</li><li>You can have two or more NFTs for the same file. For example, an NFT can be rare because there are only 10 copies or it can be common because there are hundreds of the same NFT that have been "minted."</li></ul>

Quick overview of an NFT

<ol><li>Click the Create button in the upper right-hand corner.</li><li>Click the box with an image icon in it to upload the file you'll be selling as an NFT.</li><li>Give it a title. Add a URL in the External Link field that points to your website or Twitter account. Use the Description field to explain to potential buyers what your NFT is.</li><li>You can add text that acts as unlockable content, which the buyer of the NFT will be able to see.</li><li>Select which blockchain you're minting your NFT to.</li><li>Click the Create button.</li><li>Click the Sell button and add the amount and other information.</li><li>Click the "Complete listing" button.</li></ol>

Create an NFT on OpenSea

Many platforms allow you to sell NFTs across a variety of blockchains. Two of the more popular marketplaces are OpenSea and Rarible.  Both allow you to create NFTs on Ethereum without paying fees, using "lazy minting" systems. Lazy minting lets you create an NFT and put it up for sale without writing to the blockchain. When someone buys it, the fees for writing your NFT to the blockchain are added to the sale. Fees are 2.5 % The catch:<ul><li>With OpenSea, you have to initialize your account ($300 to $400 range).</li><li>With Rarible, trying to remove your NFT from sale will cost a fee ($20 to $30).</li></ul>

Choose a platform to sell your NFT on

Confused About NFTs?

This article explains the basics of NFTs and then explores how to create an NFT using two of the most popular marketplaces. It is meant to be a brief guide to help you get started.

NFTs are the latest craze (or fad?) on the internet, and it seems like everyone’s getting into them. Here’s how you can create and sell your own using marketplaces like Rarible or OpenSea.

How to create an NFT — and why you may not want to

NFTs seem to have entered the mainstream. But the technology remains confusing and inaccessible to normal Americans.
Millions of dollars are poured into this emerging market for digital goods, which has rapidly increased the careers of some independent NFT creators.

Brands are excited about NFTs (non-fungible tokens)

Digital scarcity can be seen as a supply and demand phenomenon. The NFT technology gives you the supply, not the demand. 
NFTs impose scarcity on something that doesn't naturally have scarcity. The free aspect of the internet means anything you make has zero reproducing value. The NFT technology can change how artists are thinking about their work and how they get paid. While the file remains free and available, somebody may be willing to pay because of where they got it from.

Understanding digital scarcity

NFTs have no physical or tangible value. The technology of NFTs codifies and enforces a metric of scarcity on a digital file. 
<ul>
<li>Functional value (What can I use this for?)**:** Most of the discussion around NFTs is about how you will use the NFTs, show people your cryptocurrency wallet, and your taste in art or music.</li>
<li>Hedonic value (How much do I like this thing, in and of itself?)**:** Things that were once treated as interchangeable on the digital space, like a virtual collectable, are existing with the added value of where you got it from.</li>
</ul>

The value of NFTs

The New York Times and Taco Bell have put NFTs up for sale. An economist explains how NFTs have value.

NFTs are all the rage right now. But are they actually valuable?

Social tokens are tokens issued by individual creators or communities that enable community members to collaborate and share ownership in the value created together. They can be earned as rewards for contributing to the group & can grant access to chat group or voting on community decisions. Social tokens can be used to represent a wide range of access rights, from a person’s time, access to an exclusive group, or partial ownership of a community treasury.

Social Tokens

<ul><li><a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/bramanathan/status/1220739081946034176">Reuben Bramanathan </a>and <a href="https://twitter.com/dApp_boi/status/1088656981307445250">Matthew Vernon (dApp_boi) </a> tokenized blocks of their time where one unit could be redeemed for one hour of consultation</li><li>Income Sharing Agreements (ISAs), where individuals tokenized the rights to % of their future income. </li><li>The Grammy award-winning recording artist <a href="https://twitter.com/rac/status/1311395812279087104?lang=en">RAC </a> gave token holders access to a private Discord group and early access to merchendise.</li><li>To join <a href="https://www.fwb.help/">Friends with Benefits (FWB) </a>Discord, a community of Web3 artists, one must have a minimum number of FWB tokens.</li></ul>

Examples Of Social Tokens In Use

A concept that's connected to NFTs or DAOs, but different. 

Social tokens are tokens issued by individual creators or communities that enable community members to collaborate and share ownership in the value created together. Social tokens can be earned as rewards for contributing to the group and can be used for purposes such as granting access to a chat group or voting on community decisions. “Social token” is a broad term that encompasses personal tokens (formed around an individual), community tokens (formed around a community), and creator tokens (formed around a creator).


Blockchain Revolution

Top Blockchain Companies in 2022

How to create an NFT — and why you may not want to

It's time to
Read like a Pro.

NFTs are all the rage right now. But are they actually valuable?

CURATED BY

Blockchain Revolution

Top Blockchain Companies in 2022

How to create an NFT — and why you may not want to

It's time to Read like a Pro.

NFTs are all the rage right now. But are they actually valuable?

CURATED BY

It's time to
Read like a Pro.