What is Bitshares?
Have you ever wondered what the BTS cryptocurrency is and how to be profitable with it? In this review of BitShares I will go over the blockchain and its native coin. Formerly known as ProtoShares, the network is a decentralized exchange platform using the Delegated Proof of Stake consensus mechanism. It was created back in 2014 by Dan Larimer who is a co-founder of Steemit, EOS and Cryptonomex with the goal to remove the need to constantly convert coins and lose your anonymity.
The BitShares cryptocurrency allows you to hold your investments in stable assets and be resists periods of volatility without the need to convert to fiat and lose a big chunk of them. The maximum cap on BTS coins is 3,600,570,502, which consists of the circulating supply and a reserve fund, which collects fees and then redistributes them based on the network’s voting results.
Advantages
One of the main advantages of the Bitshares cryptocurrency is that it is a decentralized exchange platform. This means that users are in charge of their own security and if there is a malicious attack, it will be limited to one user only and not exposing the whole network. Other notable pros of the project are:
- Fast and Fair – transaction speed is within a few seconds and provides fair trades due to being decentralized
- High Security – everything that is held on the platform as a SmartCoin is backed up
Disadvantages
Even though the project seems amazing, it does have its shortcomings. One of the most notable ones is the complaints regarding the usability of the platform. Users advise that both the features and user interface are too advanced and confusing for every day use. Other notable disadvantages are:
- Volatility – the value of the cryptocurrency is still very volatile until the market decides on a fixed inherent value
History and Evolution
As I mentioned earlier, Bitshares was created in July 2014 and it is a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange that is part of the Microsoft Azure blockchain. The project was founded by Daniel Larimer and Charels Hoskinson, which have very deep backgrounds in cryptocurrency and blockchain development. Both BitShares and Steemit are among the most active blockchain networks on the market and are continuing to grow. Both have adapted and integrated support for the Graphene Protocol.
Bitshare’s Future
The main goal of the network in the future is to remain lighting fast when it comes to transaction speed. The implemented support of the Graphene Protocol is the main culprit that will help the network scale up too 100,000 transactions per second in the future. This means that at one point, the BitShares cryptocurrency will have a higher transaction throughput than the VISA and Mastercard networks combined.
Bitshares Blockchain
The BitShares blockchain is a decentralized peer to peer network that uses the Delegated Proof of Stake consensus mechanism and the SHA-512 hashing algorithm. The DPoS mechanism mitigates potential malicious activities that may impact the decentralization of the network with the help of witnesses, which were known as delegates in the past. A fixed count of witnesses sign and confirm the blocks and are voted on by the users in the network with the help of a decentralized voting system.
The average time between blocks is between 1.5 and 3 seconds and a size for the blocks of 4MB. The network automatically makes difficulty adjustments every block.
Bitshares Nodes
There are currently two types of nodes on the BitShares network. Both can be considered Full nodes and need a full copy of the blockchain transactional history to be operational. The first one is a standard Full node, that does not produce blocks and is not a validator, but a witness. The second type are the block producing witness nodes that are voted on by other witnesses and get to confirm transactions and sign the blocks.
How to Get Bitshares
If you want to obtain some BTS coins, your only option is visiting an exchange platform and swapping them for other crypto coins in your possession. Unfortunately, at this time, there’s no option of purchasing with fiat currency.
Where to Buy Bitshares
One of the main ways to buy BitShares coins is to go to an exchange, obtain a popular coin like Bitcoin or Ethereum, and convert them to BTS. Some of the platforms that I can recommend include Poloniex, LBank, Binance and Huobi. You can find links below and also, I would like to remind you that due to the volatility of the BTS coin, never invest more than what you can afford to lose.
| Exchange | Cryptocurrencies | Fiat Money | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
lbank
|
Bitcoin, Ethereum | – | Trade now |
|
zb.com
|
Bitcoin + 2 more | – | Trade now |
|
Huobi
|
Bitcoin + 2 more | – | Trade now |
Wallets for Bitshares
In order to be able to hold and manage your BTS coins, you will need a wallet. Your best bet will be the official BitShares wallet, which is supported and backed by the development team. It is compatible with the most popular operating systems like Windows, MacOS and Linux, as well as different browsers.
For your convenience, here is a BitShares Desktop Wallet Windows Installation Guide that will take you step by step on how to install the wallet on a Windows OS. Since the process is analogical for all three systems, you can still follow it. For the browsers, you will not need to actually install anything except maybe a browser extension if necessary.
Alternative Wallets
Usually, if the official wallet of a cryptocurrency is not what you are looking for, you could use an alternative wallet that supports that coin. Unfortunately, for BTS, there is no other wallet that currently offers support.
Desktop Wallets
Online Wallets
Bitshares Network Security
Throughout the history of the project, there have been no major security breaches. There is an interesting statement made by the founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, though. He states, that Delegated Proof of Stake results, show the tendency towards plutocracy, or governance controlled by the wealthy. One of the networks he pointed out as an example was BitShares.
News and Useful Weblinks
Now that you have read the BitShares review, you can get the latest developments by visiting their official website regularly. Additionally, you can visit their social media accounts and follow them there or visit the forums linked below.