Fantom is a directed acyclic graph (DAG) smart contract platform that provides decentralized finance (DeFi) services to developers using its bespoke consensus algorithm. It is an open-source decentralized smart contract platform for DApps and digital assets, created as an alternative to Ethereum. Fantom seeks to overcome the limitations of previous generation blockchains by balancing scalability, security, and decentralization. The platform's in-house token, FTM, powers the ecosystem and is used for payments, network fees, staking, and governance. Fantom's mission is to grant compatibility between all transaction bodies around the world, striving to provide higher scalability at a lower cost.

Fantom operates on two main technologies: the Lachesis protocol and Opera. The Lachesis protocol is the core consensus layer that secures the Fantom network by providing both transaction speed and security. It is an aBFT consensus engine that uses a directed acyclic graph (DAG) algorithm, allowing network data to be processed at different times. The Asynchronous Byzantine Fault Tolerant (aBFT) Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism maintains the efficiency of the entire network, providing security at maximum speed. Opera, on the other hand, is an application development layer or Fantom's mainnet deployment platform, hosting DApps. It uses a PoS model and leaderless validators, improving network security.

Fantom's key strength lies in its performance and efficient transaction processing, with the ability to handle thousands of transactions per second, where transactions are settled in 1-2 seconds, and the cost is fractions of a cent per transaction. This allows it to be a platform for processing transactions. In addition to this, Fantom also features on-chain governance where users vote with FTM tokens. The platform offers a set of tools to simplify the process of integrating existing DApps, as well as a detailed staking reward system and built-in DeFi instruments. This makes Fantom a versatile platform with potential use cases in various sectors requiring fast, secure, and scalable transaction processing.

The Fantom Foundation, which oversees the Fantom product offering, was originally created in 2018 by South Korean computer scientist Dr. Ahn Byung Ik. The launch of OPERA, Fantom’s mainnet, came in December 2019. The team behind Fantom has extensive experience primarily in the field of full-stack blockchain development, and aimed to create a smart contract platform which privileges scalability, decentralization, and security. Through token sales in 2018, Fantom gathered resources for development. The total supply of FTM is 3.175 billion tokens, of which a significant portion is currently in circulation. The remaining tokens were released according to a schedule that was set in the past.