## What are Reserve Coins?


In simple terms, Reserve Coins are digital tokens that maintain the algorithmic peg of stablecoins. By trading Reserve Coins, users can contribute to the stablecoin mechanism by providing the appropriate liquidity to maintain a sufficient peg ratio. By utilizing a reserve, base fees can be charged, collected, and pooled for transactions facilitated by the underlying stablecoin. Reserve Coin holders then get a share of this transaction pool as an incentive for their participation in maintaining the stablecoin peg ratio.
Before the launch of Djed, we will be implementing a Reserve Coin that will serve this function of maintaining Djed’s peg and liquidity stability. 

## What is Shen (SHEN)?

Continuing with the ancient Egyptian theme, we picked Shen as the name for Djed’s Reserve Coin. The Shen is a symbol of both royalty and symmetry. It has a deep connection with infinity, eternity, protection, and completeness given its circularity.

During our brainstorming sessions, we found this name to convey the characteristics and properties of Djed’s Reserve Coin appropriately.

By buying and selling Shen, users are able to maintain Djed’s USD currency peg while earning a share of transaction fees in the reserve pool. Since the Reserve Coin is a tradable asset, holders can also profit from the short-mid term price fluctuations as an added incentive.

## What Is Djed (DJED)?

Djed is the first over collateralized crypto-backed algorithmic [stablecoin](https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/article/what-is-a-stablecoin) contract on the Cardano network. It operates by keeping a reserve of base coins (ADA), and minting and burning stablecoins and reserve coins. The contract maintains the peg of stablecoins to a target price by buying and selling stablecoins, using the reserve, and charging fees, which accumulate in the reserve. The ultimate beneficiaries of this revenue stream are holders of reserve coins, who boost the reserve with funds while assuming the risk of price fluctuation.

### Who Are the Founders of Djed?

Djed [research paper](https://eprint.iacr.org/2021/1069.pdf) was written and developed by the IOG team (Joachim Zahnentferner,Dmytro Kaidalov,Jean-Frédéric Etienne,Javier Roberto Diaz) and is powered by [Coti](https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/coti/).



### What Makes Djed Unique?

DJED is the first formally verified stablecoin protocol. The use of formal methods in the programming process has greatly contributed to the design and stability properties of Djed. Using formal techniques, the properties are proven by mathematical theorems:

*Peg upper and lower bound maintenance: the price will not go above or beyond the set price. In the normal reserve ratio range, purchases and sales are not restricted, and users have no incentive to trade stablecoins outside the peg range in a secondary market.

*Peg robustness during market crashes: up to a set limit that depends on the reserve ratio, the peg is maintained even when the price of the base coin falls sharply.

*No insolvency: no bank is involved, so there is no bank contract to go bankrupt.

*No bank runs: all users are treated fairly and paid accordingly, so there is provably no incentive for users to race to redeem their stablecoins.

*Monotonically increasing equity per reserve coin: under some conditions, the reserve surplus per reserve coin is guaranteed to increase as users interact with the contract. Under these conditions, reserve coin holders are guaranteed to profit.

*No reserve draining: under some conditions, it is impossible for a malicious user to execute a sequence of actions that would steal reserves from the bank.

*Bounded dilution: there is a limit to how many reserve coin holders and their profit can be diluted due to the issuance of more reserve coins.


### Related Pages:

Learn more about Djed algorithmic stable coin [here](https://iohk.io/en/blog/posts/2021/08/18/djed-implementing-algorithmic-stablecoins-for-proven-price-stability/)

Learn more about Djed and Shen mechanism [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq_1DOrsXGU)


New to cryptocurrency? Find all the information you need with [Alexandria](https://coinmarketcap.com/alexandria/categories/crypto-basics), CoinMarketCap’s dedicated education resource.


### How did Djed manage to keep its peg?

Djed’s algorithm is based on a collateral ratio in the range of 400%-800% for $Djed and $Shen. ADA prices fluctuations are offset by Shen, covering shortfalls and guaranteeing the collateralization rate.

The ADA reserve pool is not managed by market makers, but by users who mint the $Shen reserve coin and add ADA to the pool. This provides a decentralized aspect to the $Djed mechanism. $Shen holders are incentivized to provide liquidity through fees.

As $Djed can be over collateralized (up to 8x), the risk of $Djed being unpegged decreases. This means that for every 1 $Djed minted, there are 3–7 dollars worth of $ADA in the reserve pool. If the ratio falls below 400%, users will not be able to mint $Djed, and $Shen holders won’t be able to burn their $Shen. So in the event of a market dip there is a security blanket for $Djed holders that ensures its sustainability. The minting of new $Shen is also supervised in order to maintain the balances stabilized, and ensure there will always be enough ADA in the pool to provide a dollar equivalent value to the $Djed when burning it.


### Where Can You Buy Djed (DJED)?

You can mint DJED and SHEN directly from its [platform](https://djed.xyz/) or on any Cardano top DEXs. 

New to crypto? Read our [easy guide](https://coinmarketcap.com/how-to-buy-bitcoin/) to buying Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies."

Shen

Daedalus

Lace

Cardano

Snek

IAGON

Minswap

Indigo Protocol

Hosky Token

KubeCoin

AdaSwap

COTI markets itself as the first enterprise-grade fintech platform that empowers organizations to build their own payment solutions as well as digitize any currency to save time as well as money.

COTI is one of the world’s first blockchain protocols that is optimized for decentralized payments and designed for use by merchants, governments, payment DApps and stablecoin issuers.

COTI Pay is the first application. It describes itself as a fully encompassing finance on the blockchain. The COTI Group launched in March of 2017, while the Staking Platform Launched on Jan. 1, 2020.

It is an ecosystem that is designed specifically to meet all of the challenges associated with traditional finance, including latency, fees, global inclusion and risks. This is done through the introduction of the DAG-based protocol as well as infrastructure that is completely scalable, private, inclusive and fast.

The ecosystem has DAG-based blockchain, proof-of-trust consensus algorithm, multiDAG, GTS (Global Trust System), a universal payment solution and a payment gateway.

COTI

SingularityNET is a blockchain-powered platform that allows anybody to easily "create, share, and monetize" AI services, thanks to its globally-accessible AI marketplace.

Through the SingularityNET marketplace, users can browse, test and purchase a huge variety of AI services using the platform’s native utility token — AGIX. Moreover, the marketplace represents an outlet AI developers can use to publish and sell their AI tools, and easily track their performance.

With the benefits of LLMs and generative AI are increasingly exciting, their limitations are also becoming increasingly apparent. The convergence of structured knowledge with neural networks is emerging as the key to overcoming their shortcomings.

Uniquely positioned at the heart of this convergence, SingularityNET will prioritize the integration of Knowledge Graphs (KGs) and comprehensive Neural Symbolic tools for LLMs, with the goal of empowering developers to create the next generation of AI systems on the SingularityNET Platform.

SingularityNET is strategically positioned to become the Knowledge Layer of the Internet, leading the evolution of the emerging AI landscape while also laying the foundations for the Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) of tomorrow.

The team behind SingularityNET pioneered the development of an AI known as Sophia, which is described as the "world's most expressive robot". SingularityNET’s goal is to enable Sophia to be able to fully understand human language, and continue developing “OpenCog” — an AI framework that is hoped to eventually achieve a state known as “advanced general intelligence,” i.e. human-level artificial intelligence (or beyond).

The platform was first announced in 2017 and completed an initial coin offering (ICO) in December the same year, raising $36 million in just one minute.

SingularityNET

Theta (THETA) is a blockchain powered network purpose-built for video streaming. Launched in March 2019, the Theta mainnet operates as a decentralized network in which users share bandwidth and computing resources on a peer-to-peer (P2P) basis. The project is advised by Steve Chen, co-founder of YouTube and Justin Kan, co-founder of Twitch.

Theta features its own native cryptocurrency token, THETA, which performs various governance tasks within the network, and counts Google, Binance, Blockchain ventures, Gumi, Sony Europe and Samsung as Enterprise validators, along with a Guardian network of thousands of community-run guardian nodes.

Developers say that the project aims to shake up the video streaming industry in its current form — centralization, poor infrastructure and high costs mean that end users often end up with a poor experience. Content creators likewise earn less revenue due to the barriers between them and end users.

The Theta team has created a customer-centric business plan for their growing ecosystem of services focused on esports, music, TV, movies, and education. The list of Theta Network partners includes video platforms like Samsung VR, Cinedigm, Shout! Factory, Pandora.tv, Play Labs, and THETA.tv.

Wrapped THETA

Bubble

Cardano is a proof-of-stake blockchain platform that says its goal is to allow “changemakers, innovators and visionaries” to bring about positive global change.

To learn more about this project, check out our deep dive of Cardano.

The open-source project also aims to “redistribute power from unaccountable structures to the margins to individuals” — helping to create a society that is more secure, transparent and fair.

Cardano was founded back in 2017, and named after the 16th century Italian polymath Gerolamo Cardano. The native ADA token takes its name from the 19th century mathematician Ada Lovelace, widely regarded as the world’s first computer programmer. The ADA token is designed to ensure that owners can participate in the operation of the network. Because of this, those who hold the cryptocurrency have the right to vote on any proposed changes to the software.

The team behind the layered blockchain say that there have already been some compelling use cases for its technology, which aims to allow decentralized apps and smart contracts to be developed with modularity.

In August 2021, Charles Hoskinson announced the launch of the Alonzo hard fork, causing Cardano price to surge, gaining 116% in the following month. On Sept. 12, 2021, the Cardano ‘Alonzo’ hard fork officially launched, bringing smart contract functionality to the blockchain. Over 100 smart contracts were deployed in the following 24 hours after the launch.

Cardano is used by agricultural companies to track fresh produce from field to fork, while other products built on the platform allow educational credentials to be stored in a tamper-proof way, and retailers to clamp down on counterfeit goods.

ClubCoin

0xBitcoin

Graviocoin

SingularityDAO

Orion is a suite of decentralized finance (DeFi) trading products with instant access to aggregated centralized and decentralized exchange liquidity to provide users with real-time best asset prices in a seamless trading experience. Orion offers the non-custodial equivalent of a DEX with access to the best priced liquidity in the world, empowering people with financial responsibility on a global scale.

Orion

Band Protocol is a cross-chain data oracle platform that is able to take real-world data and supply it to on-chain applications, while also connecting APIs to smart-contracts to facilitate the exchange of information between on-chain and off-chain data sources.

By supplying reputable, verifiable real-world data to blockchains, Band Protocol unlocks a range of new use cases for developers to explore — since they can now use any type of real-world data as part of their decentralized application (DApp) logic, including sports, weather, random numbers, price feed data and more.

Band Protocol initially launched as an ERC-20 project on the Ethereum blockchain in September 2019, but transitioned to the Cosmos network in June 2020 with the release of Band Protocol 2.0. The new protocol is built on BandChain using the Cosmos SDK. Oracle nodes on BandChain not only relay data but are also involved in block production/validation, giving them a dual role.

BAND is the native token of the Band Protocol ecosystem and is used as collateral by validators involved in fulfilling data requests, as well as the main medium of exchange on BandChain — being used to paying for private data.

Band Protocol

IQ.cash

Wanchain is a distributed ledger that allows for cross-chain transactions and the interoperability of multiple chains. Although Wanchain facilitates transactions between blockchains, it is also a stand-alone blockchain that runs autonomously. The protocol acts as a distributed ledger that processes and maintains records of cross-chain transactions.

Transactions on Wanchain do not only occur between different public blockchains but between private chains as well. As an Ethereum (ETH) fork, Wanchain enjoys some of the properties of the Ethereum blockchain. The protocol securely and autonomously processes applications via smart contracts.  The use cases for Wanchain include decentralized exchanges (DEXs), lending and borrowing platforms, stablecoins, crowdfunding, multi-currency payments and settlements.

The platform is totally decentralized and requires no custodian party to manage or confirm transactions. Unlike other cross-chain systems, Wanchain does not rely on a third-party platform to authenticate transactions. The locked account mechanism is used to secure and manage accounts on the network, eliminating third-party interferences.

Wanchain

DucatusX

STIPS

MobilinkToken

Energi (NRG) is a next generation Proof of Stake (PoS) cryptocurrency. Powered by the Energi blockchain, NRG combines Ethereum smart contract compatibility with a self-funding treasury, decentralized masternode governance, and a Layer 1 and Layer 2 protocol. NRG also serves in place of a governance token for the Energiswap decentralized exchange.
Funded by the NRG treasury, the Energi organization is a blockchain-based financial technology provider. Energi was founded on the goal of delivering secure, decentralized financial solutions. Energi currently employs a team of over 60 contributors spread across 5 continents.

NRG Features
Ethereum-Compatible blockchain with smart contract capabilities to support DApp development.
Funding provided by an economically-optimized, self-funding treasury to enable the upkeep and rapid expansion of the project.
On-Chain Governance driven by a masternode network to guide strategy and provide user protections.
Speed and Scalability delivered by a Layer 1 and Layer 2 network that enables sustainable throughput.

The NRG Economic Model
1 million NRG are released every month and divided between the Energi Treasury, Masternodes, Stakers, and Backbone.
The breakdown of the allocations can be viewed below:
40% to the Energi Treasury
40% to Energi Masternodes
10% to Energi Stakers
10% to the Energi Backbone

TREASURY
Energi’s treasury is self-funded. Funds from the treasury pay for product development, marketing, merchant adoption, and team growth.

MASTERNODES
The primary role of masternodes is to provide stability for the network by validating transactions. Their secondary role is to provide governance by submitting and voting on proposals that dictate the long-term strategy and resource allocation for Energi. Masternode owners are awarded a larger portion of staking rewards as an incentive.

STAKING
Staking enables users to ‘stake’ their NRG on the network; that is, to validate the transactions required to make a new block. Staking creates a simple, easy way for users to take advantage of the Proof of Stake mechanism and get rewarded for doing so.

BACKBONE
Instead of issuing a pre-mine or holding an ICO, Energi’s founder chose to take distributed compensation over time. This ties his financial rewards from the project to Energi’s long-term success and sustainability.

Where Can You Buy NRG?
NRG is available on a number of well-established exchanges. Currently, NRG can be bought, sold, or traded on the following exchanges:

Energiswap
Uniswap
Kucoin
DigiFinex
Bitbns
Mercatox
Bithumb
WhiteBIT
HitBTC
Hotbit
Indodax
Changelly
CoinEx

Check here for a regularly updated list of exchanges to trade NRG.

Who Is the Founder of Energi?
Energi was founded in 2018 by @TommyWorldPower (Twitter) with the goal of being the first cryptocurrency to drive truly global adoption. Tommy has been involved in cryptocurrency since 2012, starting out as an early-adopter and trader.
Through his research as a trader, he identified several key issues that were not being addressed by cryptocurrencies at the time. He created Energi to directly address those issues and provide a sustainable, scalable platform for the future of cryptocurrency.

Links:
Learn more about Energi here: https://www.energi.world/

View staking rewards, treasury funds, and more here: https://nexus.energi.network/

Energi

BoutsPro

VeChainThor (VET) is a versatile enterprise-grade L1 smart contract platform whose origins began in 2015. VeChain is known as a pioneer of real-world enterprise applications, and built a distributed platform powered by Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, NFC chips and blockchain to help various industries solve data-related challenges.

VeChain solves major blockchain adoption hurdles. The platform uses an intelligent two token model, VET and VTHO, separating the protocol's Store of Value and gas fee payment mechanisms, ensuring costs can be kept low and stable. Fee delegation allows smart contracts to pay gas fees on behalf of business users, and an advanced transaction model allows data to be packaged more efficiently while ensuring finality of data.

VeChain is focused on delivering a wave of incentive-based sustainability dApps through its new platform, VeBetterDAO, working closely with Boston Consulting Group to achieve adoption across enterprise and individual users, and helping  onboard the next billion users to Web3 over the coming decade.

From supply chains to sustainability, VeChain has continuously demonstrated its leading role as a driver of blockchain in business, and is dedicated to its role as a pioneer of driving real world adoption of blockchain technology.

VeChain

IOTA is a distributed ledger technology (DLT) that features unique architecture and an open-source product suite for individuals, businesses, and institutions to use in Web3. It is built on a directed acyclic graph (DAG) called the Tangle, which can be pictured as a multi-dimensional blockchain. It enables the exchange of data and value on a decentralized platform through direct and secure transfers, executed on and immutably recorded on the network.

To learn more about this project, check out our deep dive into IOTA.

Together with its staging network Shimmer, IOTA aims to offer solutions to establish a secure and permissionless infrastructure that can drive the economy of the future. It enables the development of decentralized applications through automated trust in the form of Ethereum-compatible smart contracts, an advanced consensus algorithm, and thoughtfully balanced incentives.

IOTA delivers tools for creating and managing custom Layer 2 (EVM) chains, deploying smart contracts, minting native tokens and NFTs with distinctive features, and introducing digital identities to users.

Launching in 2024, IOTA 2.0 will be a protocol upgrade that rebuilds IOTA’s architecture to deliver full decentralization. You can find more about it here.