What Is Fantom?

Fantom is a blockchain platform offering ledger services to businesses and applications. The network intends to operate as open-source so that anyone can use it and customize it to their needs. The platform is permissionless; therefore, anyone can run code. Also, the network seeks to develop an infrastructure for a more connected and efficient future so that people can benefit from technological breakthroughs to better the quality of their lives.

The platform is designed to overcome the limitations of the previous-generation blockchain networks. The previous networks face the “blockchain trilemma”: a trade-off in distributed ledger technologies to balance security, decentralization, and speed. The limitation is that it is impossible to optimize all three factors simultaneously without compromise. Fantom resolves this issue by achieving asynchronous Byzantine fault tolerance (aBFT), a consensus enabling transactions to be processed non-simultaneously, thus enhancing the speed and the throughput of transactions. The consensus lets the nodes in the network confirm event blocks comprising transactions, independent of any timing assumptions. Further, aBFT can reach an agreement on transactions despite losing some of the messages between nodes.

Further, the network uses Opera, a safe and fast environment to build decentralized applications (DApps) that take one second to finalize and settle a transaction compared to several minutes taken by other networks.

In addition to the above, the network’s a BFT consensus algorithm is Lachesis, a leaderless, Byzantine fault tolerant, final, and asynchronous system. Being Byzantine fault tolerant, the system still operates even if some of the nodes act maliciously or fail to work, and finality means that a transaction cannot be altered or reversed by any party. Since the Lachesis algorithm has a very low time to finality, it achieves absolute finality, meaning a transaction is considered final once it is included in a block. And being a leaderless algorithm implies that the platform’s security doesn’t rely on a small set of actors, as the algorithm removes leaders. Lachesis can be used to create decentralized applications for sectors, such as payments, supply chain tracking, healthcare data storage, etc.

Owing to its architecture, the platform offers the following features:

• Scalability: Each network’s stability and performance are independent of any effect by traffic since they are independent of one another. Every application is given its blockchain.

• Security: That emerges from the platform’s absolute finality mechanism.

FTM, an ERC20 token (a standard for creating and issuing smart contracts on the blockchain), is the native currency of the platform. The coin is used for safeguarding the network via a proof-of-stake system. The tokens can be used to send and receive payments and maintain on-chain governance. To participate in the voting process to propose any changes and improvements, users need to have the FTM token. The coin can also be utilized for paying network fees, smart contracts’ deployment fees, transaction fees, etc. 

Moreover, the token can be used as collateral on the network’s upcoming DeFi. DeFi refers to an emerging financial technology that eliminates central control of banks and institutions on financial products, money, and financial services.

The tokens can be stored safely in the platform’s official wallet, fWallet, enabling staking, sending, receiving, and accessing the DeFi ecosystem. 

History of Fantom

The Fantom Foundation developed the platform, and Michael Kong is the CEO/CIO. Further, the team comprises 21 other members, including Andre Cronje (DeFi architect), David Richardson (director), Samuel Hardcourt (director), Simone Pomposi (CMO), and others.

The token was launched in 2018. Further, the maximum total supply of the token is 3.175 billion.

How Are Tokens Earned?

Token holders can stake their coins and earn FTM tokens as a reward. Staking can be carried out directly by using a phone or a PC. There’s no minimum staking, and users can stake one token and earn rewards on it. Further, the platform has a fluid staking model in which stakers can select a lock-in period between 0 and 365 days. The higher the lock-in period, the higher the reward percentage.