What is Tezos (XTZ)?

Deep Dive

1. On-Chain Governance & Self-Amendment

Tezos pioneered a formal on-chain governance process where stakeholders (called "bakers") vote to approve protocol upgrades (CoinMarketCap). This system allows the blockchain to evolve and implement improvements—like the recent "Tallinn" upgrade which reduced block time to 6 seconds—without requiring a hard fork that splits the community or the chain. This creates a stable, upgradeable foundation for long-term development.

2. Liquid Proof-of-Stake Consensus

Instead of energy-intensive mining, Tezos uses a Liquid Proof-of-Stake (LPoS) mechanism to secure its network. Token holders can either stake ("bake") directly with a minimum of 8,000 XTZ or delegate their tokens to a baker. Bakers validate transactions, propose blocks, and participate in governance, earning rewards for their service. This design aims to be energy-efficient and encourages broad participation in network security.

3. A Platform for Diverse Applications

Tezos serves as a platform for assets and decentralized applications. Its ecosystem is known for a thriving digital art and NFT community, attracted by low fees and energy efficiency. It also supports decentralized finance (DeFi) and is expanding into real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, such as tokenized uranium on uranium.io. Its Layer-2 solution, Etherlink, provides an EVM-compatible environment for scalable, low-cost transactions.

Conclusion

Fundamentally, Tezos is a blockchain built to evolve through community consensus, offering a secure and adaptable environment for everything from digital collectibles to institutional-grade asset tokenization. How will its unique governance model shape its ability to integrate future technological innovations?