Token Review: Tezos (XTZ)

OVERVIEW

Today we will talk about: Tezos (XTZ)!

In the last token review, I talked about Avalanche. If you missed my last crypto analysis, you can recover it below.

Avalanche (AVAX) Review

Today we will be looking at an emerging cryptocurrency that is making a lot of buzz: Tezos (XTZ). This is a cryptocurrency that bases its technology on the Proof of Stake protocol and allows you to earn returns automatically through depositing tokens and participating in the transaction validation system in the Tezos network.

What is Tezos?

Tezos (XTZ) is a blockchain network connected to a digital token, which bears the name tez or tezzie. Unlike other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Litecoin, the Tezos network does not rely on tez token mining. Instead, token holders receive a reward for taking part in the "proof-of-stake" algorithm consensus mechanism. The main purpose of Tezos is to have token holders collaborate with each other to make decisions that will improve the cryptocurrency in the future. Tezos' native token symbol is XTZ.

Tezos is a decentralized platform used for the creation of dApps. This cryptocurrency is very similar to Ethereum, in that both the Tezos and Ethereum blockchains support dApps created using smart contracts. Tezos, however, has some unique features that set it apart from Ethereum. The most notable is the network's on-chain governance, which allows holders of XTZ, Tezos' native currency, to vote on future decisions made by the network. The voting feature is designed to avoid community division, which usually results in hard forks or cryptocurrency depreciation.

The self-regulating nature of Tezos' protocol results in a blockchain that is easier to update, while at the same time always being open to adding new features.

Some Formula 1 fans will probably have noticed that Tezos is a sponsor of the Red Bull and McLaren teams.

Tezos Team

The co-founders, Arthur Breitman and Kathleen Breitman, have been involved with the development of Tezos since 2014, along with a small team of developers. The company is based in Switzerland. The two have secured $232 million in investment in the token ICO in just 2 weeks, accepting contributions in both Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Currently Breitman is the only founder directly related to Tezos, and others work for the partner organizations Nomadic Labs and OCaml Pro. Arthur Breitman is a French-born computer scientist, mathematician and entrepreneur. Before joining Tezos, he worked in the financial field. He was an early adopter of Bitcoin, but soon discovered its flaws-unable to evolve, leading to countless hard forks. The improvement he proposed is the Tezos project that exists today.

Kathleen Breitman also gained experience in the financial sector, having worked at R3 and Bridgewater Associates before founding Tezos with her husband Arthur. It was her work at R3 that gave her an in-depth understanding of blockchain technology. Although the Tezos project is widely known, there is little information about developers and employees. Most of the work may be performed by a partner company, and there is no team information posted on the Tezos website.

DEEPENING

In the OVERVIEW section I said that is a blockchain network connected to a digital token, which bears the name tez or tezzie. Unlike other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Litecoin, the Tezos network does not rely on tez token mining. Instead, token holders receive a reward for taking part in the "proof-of-stake" algorithm consensus mechanism. The main purpose of Tezos is to have token holders collaborate with each other to make decisions that will improve the cryptocurrency in the future.

Now let’s see some new things about Tezos!

As said on Tezos website: "At Tezos, all stakeholders can participate in the governance of the protocol”. This is a concept that is as interesting as it is innovative. "On-chain governance" works similar to a standard democratic process. Example: let's assume that a developer proposes a change to the protocol, which aims to improve the blockchain. As the change is suggested, an invoice for the proposed work is also attached, so all XTZ holders vote on the proposal. If the change passes the vote, it is distributed across the testing network. Once the proposed control has been tested and does what it claims, another vote takes place. If XTZ owners decide to keep it, the change is carried on the main network.

The two biggest advantages of "on-chain governance" are the incentive structure for developers to keep coming up with new ideas and improving the protocol and the democratic voting system that gives all stakeholders a voice and prevents centralization of the network.

What makes Tezos different?

Tezos hopes to become a major blockchain and market itself as an alternative to blockchains such as Ethereum, Zcash, and Bitcoin. So, what makes Tezos unique and can be seen as a viable alternative to these other major blockchains?

Every other blockchain can be described by a triplet (state, apply and score).

• State: Internal variable state type. For example, in Bitcoin, this would be a set of unspent outputs.
• Apply: adopt state S, transaction T and generate a new state S transformation.
• Score: Determine the scoring function for valid blockchain branches. In Bitcoin, this is the total amount of hash power on the chain.

Tezos distinguishes itself by treating the apply and score variables as part of the mutable state, allowing the ledger rules to be autonomous. This is the key, because the ledger rules control the evolution of the ledger.

Tezos Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Adoption: Tezos has returned to the mainstream media after being dormant for some dormant years. As compared to previous years, it is being greatly accepted by the public and developers are giving the Tezos network a shot as some are building their DApps on top of the Tezos network.
• Transaction speed: The transaction speed is much lower compared to other cryptocurrencies.
• Transaction cost: There are virtually zero transaction fees on the Tezos network. Contrarily, the users are rewarded for their involvement in the transactional process.
• Energy consumption: Tezos Blockchain is not based on mining procedures.
• Decentralization: At the core of Tezos Blockchain is an improved decentralized network. It allows users better participation in the process while maintaining a high level of decentralization of the network. Tezos is basically cleaning the concept of decentralization from tyrannical remnants.

Cons:

• Security: Relatively low. The coin is relatively new/unproven.
• Transactions per second: Tezos has achieved a TPS of around 40 on its Mainnet. However, the Tezos foundation claims that its theoretical limit is much higher than this.
• Privacy: Transactions with this coin are pseudonymous.

With this article about Tezos we have discovered new things about this project.

Next week I’ll introduce you a new cryptocurrency!

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