What Is Neo (NEO)?
NEO is the native token of the Neo blockchain, which is a public network that allows users to develop decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts. The Neo blockchain's ongoing development, which ensures that the network is long-lasting and able to handle rising demands, is one of its distinctive advantages. If you want to see the current NEO price, check out the Neo price chart above.
Neo’s primary goal is to digitize assets utilizing the decentralized blockchain network and digital identity system. In other words, it seeks to give users the capacity to digitize physical assets such as real estate, fiat currencies, and so on, allowing them to be traded on the NEO network. The digital identification system utilizes multi-layered authentication techniques, including fingerprint, voice, and facial recognition.
Talking about the smart contracts of Neo, they govern user transactions without the interference of third parties. Compared to Ethereum, Neo’s smart contracts have an advantage in terms of the programming languages that they support. While Ethereum released its own programming language called Solidity, Neo supports most of the popular programming languages such as Java, Python, and others. Thus, developers are less likely to make coding errors, since they can use the programming languages they already know.
In 2021, a new version of the network called Neo 3.0 was released. The main aim of this update was to support blockchain interoperability by developing external cross-chain and native on-chain ecosystems. In order to achieve this, Neo employed Poly Network, which is an interoperability protocol.
Considering the ecosystem of the Neo blockchain, apart from NEO tokens, it also has GAS tokens. These tokens are used as a payment method for transaction fees and smart contract execution. GAS tokens are produced every time a new block is formed, which roughly takes around 20 seconds. They can be acquired by staking NEO tokens and participating in the process of Neo’s consensus mechanism.
Speaking of which, Neo uses the Delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerance (dBFT) consensus algorithm. Based on real-time blockchain voting, the algorithm chooses the validators (consensus nodes) for the following consensus round. This reduces block time and transaction confirmation time while improving algorithmic efficiency.
The network's stability and safety were increased with the introduction of dBFT2.0, an upgraded version of the algorithm, which was released in March 2019. It added a recovery mechanism and a 3-stage consensus method. This algorithm requires that the majority of consensus nodes reach an agreement before new blocks are created.
The Story of Neo
The Neo crypto project was launched in 2014 by Da Hongfei and Erik Zhang. It’s believed to be the first China-based public blockchain. Initially, the name of the network was Antshares. However, after three years, it was renamed Neo, which symbolized a new company’s approach. Though unofficially it’s also sometimes referred to as Ethereum's killer or the Chinese version of Ethereum.
Talking about the founders, ​​Da Hongfei has a degree in technology and English. Prior to founding Neo, Hongfei worked at a consulting company. Besides, apart from founding Neo, he also founded OnChain together with Zhang, which is the company behind Neo.
Erik Zhang has a degree in computer science. Apart from founding Neo and OnChain, he developed the Delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerance algorithm. Besides, together with Hongfei, he founded the Neo Foundation, which aims to encourage the use of the Neo blockchain. Hongfei and Zhang are the chairmen of this foundation.
The Purpose of NEO Coins
NEO has two main functions – it allows users to participate in the governance process, and it allows them to claim GAS tokens.
In terms of governance, NEO holders take part by casting votes for the Neo Committee. It’s made up of members and the consensus nodes that run the Neo blockchain. The Neo Committee keeps the network active and modifies crucial blockchain characteristics.
In terms of GAS tokens, holders of NEO can stake their tokens in order to claim GAS. These tokens are essential to the Neo ecosystem since, as already mentioned, they are required to fund transactions and the execution of smart contracts.
Just make sure to look at the Neo price chart because it displays both current and previous NEO prices.
Tokenomics of NEO Coins
NEO has a total supply of 100 million coins. All of the coins were created during the initial launch and there is no possibility of creating more. Half of the supply was dedicated to supporters of NEO during the crowdfunding, while the other half is dedicated to the development of the network and it’s managed by the Neo Council.
Besides, note that NEO coins cannot be divided. This means that you can only transfer 1, 10, or 20 NEO coins but not 1.5, 10.6, or 20.5849 coins.
Lastly, the NEO price is subject to change, so keep that in mind if you're thinking about purchasing NEO tokens. This happens as a result of the NEO price being affected by the overall fluctuation of the cryptocurrency market.
