Crypto is on a path to becoming mainstream and familiar to most people who are digital natives. But, even though most of us might have heard about Bitcoin and Ethereum, the workings of the blockchains are still alien to most. Moreover, blockchain technologies are not just limited to the creation of cryptos they can also help businesses develop solutions specific to their needs. In this blog let us explore five key blockchain protocols which every crypto enthusiast must know about. Understanding the underlying technology can help one make smarter decisions.
Before exploring different blockchain types, let us define what a protocol is.
What is a Blockchain Protocol?
Protocols are rules which govern the functioning of a blockchain. Since Blockchains are a network of computers which operate on a peer-to-peer basis, protocols define how information is transferred between computers on the network.
Blockchains which note all the transactions of a specific crypto token need to be governed by a set of rules. These rules are essentially the heart of the blockchain. It gives an idea to the miners, stakers and the investing community about how exactly the blockchain functions. The rules also help investors identify if the crypto is worth investing in or not.
Read more: What is Crypto Staking
Protocols also impact network performance and security measures. These are functional building blocks of the blockchain and hence it becomes imperative for one to stay informed about the same. A detailed blockchain protocol list is mentioned below.
Five Types of Blockchain Protocols Which are Widely Accepted
Hyperledger
Hyperledger is a highly reputed protocol which powers enterprises to develop blockchain-based solutions specific to their needs. Industry giants like JP Morgan and Samsung have leveraged this technology for developing business applications. Several Hyperledger projects have graduated from an incubation stage and have caught fame. Namely: Hyperledger Besu, Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Indy, Hyperledger Indy, Hyperledger Iroha, and Hyperledger Sawtooth. Each version has its possibilities.
Hyperledger also has an extensive library which can help developers build applications. The solutions are crypto-agnostic which means the functionality of the blockchain does not depend on the price of crypto.
This infrastructure provided by Hyperledger makes it one of the most sought blockchain solutions in the industry.
Multichain
It is a blockchain protocol built for communication within organisations or between organisations. Multichain provides solutions for private blockchains. Multi-chain provides an API which can be utilised for the development of blockchain solutions. It cuts down the development time by almost 80% according to the multi-chain website. Unlike public blockchains, blockchains built using Multichain offer complete control over the blockchain and hence it is most suited for organisations to deal with high-privacy financial transactions like banking.
Ethereum
The Ethereum blockchain is perhaps the most explored blockchain to date. It allows the creation of Decentralised finance platforms, NFTs, and Smart contracts with various applications. Ethereum is an open-source public blockchain which runs on the Proof of Stake Consensus mechanism. Proof of Stake makes the blockchain hyper-efficient with 99.95% less energy requirement than its previous Proof of Work version.
Decentralised Autonomous Organisations( DAO) can build Smart contracts on this blockchain. These DAOs have their constitution, voting methods, tokenomics, treasury and reward system. DAOs exist to build a profitable business or add value to the Ethereum ecosystem while ensuring that the power of decision-making is democratised to all members of the group. There is an endless list of applications which run on Ethereum. Some of the notable ones include Metamask ( a crypto wallet), Brave Browser ( A web browser which is giving tough competition to Google chrome) and many more.
Quorum
It is an open-source solution for companies in the finance sector. It is backed by JP Morgan, one of the largest private banks in the world. It enables the use of Ethereum to build applications for specific uses. Quorum blockchain service can be run through a Microsoft azure account and can be easily deployed from the Azure marketplace. This enables enterprises to build blockchain services in the cloud.
Corda
It is an open-source project which enables interoperability, which is the power of exchanging information between various blockchains. Transactions performed using Corda are transparent and highly anonymised at the same time. While its solutions are tailored towards banking, several integrations of Corda can make it a dependable solution for any application. It is accredited by the R3 banking consortium making it a marquee name for blockchain solutions for banking.
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