The Near (NEAR) protocol is a smart contract-enabled public blockchain conceptualized as a community-run cloud computing platform. Near Protocol is the creation of NEAR Collective (NEAR Collective). It was designed to allow decentralized applications (dApp) to be built on it. In a way, that makes it a competitor for Ethereum. In this post, we will find out more about it. Let’s get started.
NEAR Protocol: All You Need To Know
What is the NEAR Protocol?
The NEAR protocol is focused on building a developer and user friendly platform. To this end, NEAR introduced human-readable account names as opposed to purely cryptographic wallet addresses. Also, with the NEAR protocol, new users can interact with dApps and smart contracts without the need for a wallet.
Examples of notable projects built on NEAR are the NFT minting platform Mintbase and the Flux protocol, which allows developers to create markets based on assets, commodities, real-world events, and more.
What is the NEAR token project?
The native cryptocurrency of the NEAR protocol is the NEAR token. Transaction fees and storage payments on the network are paid in NEAR tokens. NEAR tokens can also be staked by token holders who participate in maintaining network consensus as transaction validators. These transaction validators receive a NEAR token award for their services, corresponding to 4.5 percent of the total NEAR supply on an annual basis.
In addition, some of the transaction fees created by smart contracts are given to the developer who created the relevant smart contract.
Who are the founders of the Near (NEAR) project?
Near (NEAR) was created in 2018 by former Microsoft employee Alexander Skidanov and developer Ilya Polosukhin. Since 2018, the NEAR team has been around 50 people with the participation of developers from companies such as Facebook, Google, Niantic.
Almost all members of the NEAR team are from Russia and the former Soviet countries.
NEAR token statistics
NEAR token was released on April 22, 2020. With a maximum supply of 1,000,000,000 NEAR tokens, NEAR is distributed as follows:
- 17.6%: Financiers
- 17.2%: Community Grant Programs
- 14%: Core Contributors
- 12%: Community Sale
- 11.7%: Early Ecosystem
- 11.4%: Operational Grants
- 10%: Foundation Donation
- 6.1%: Small Financiers
What makes the Near (NEAR) project special?
In recent years, decentralized applications have gained great popularity. However, this situation has also caused the scaling problem in the crypto money world to increase. In particular, Ethereum (ETH) started to experience this problem seriously with the rapid increase in its use. Against this, various solutions were brought within ETH, but projects like NEAR decided to create brand new blockchains with completely new architectures.
The Near (NEAR) protocol implements the sharding mechanism as a solution to this scalability problem that affects blockchains significantly. Fragmentation reduces the computational load on nodes by dividing or segmenting the network.
NEAR uniquely uses the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus algorithm. An auction system is used to select validators in a time period called an epoch, which corresponds to approximately every 12 hours. Thus, validators with larger stakes, i.e. stake more NEAR tokens, have more influence in the consensus process.
In the NEAR token whitepaper, the Near protocol is described as “a decentralized application platform with the potential to change the way systems are designed, applications built, and the internet works.”
The Near protocol has been described as “a complex technology with a simple purpose” and aims “for developers and entrepreneurs to easily and sustainably create applications that secure high-value assets such as money and identity while making them as performant and usable as consumers can access.”
How to get a NEAR token?
NEAR tokens can be traded on trusted cryptocurrency exchanges.
Near (NEAR) FAQs
What does Near (NEAR) do?
The Near (NEAR) protocol is designed for developers to build decentralized applications.
How does Near (NEAR) solve the scalability issue?
Near (NEAR) applies the sharding method to solve the scalability problem.
What does the NEAR token do?
NEAR token is the native cryptocurrency of the Near protocol. The NEAR token is used for payment of transaction fees on the network and for staking. It also gives owners a say in governance.
What are the different types of NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets?
A NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet is not a wallet that stores the NEAR Protocol (NEAR) value you own. These are the software that contains the private and public keys required to use the NEAR Protocol (NEAR) values you have. NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets allow you to see your NEAR Protocol balance and transfer your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) balances to other NEAR Protocol wallets with the Blockchain system. Every NEAR Protocol wallet has an address, this address code consists of 26-35 characters of numbers and letters.
The NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet is the address of the NEAR Protocol wallet that is visible to others and allows them to send NEAR Protocol (NEAR) to your wallet. With this address, you can deposit NEAR Protocol from other wallets to your own wallet. In order to send NEAR Protocol (NEAR) from your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet to another NEAR Protocol wallet, you need to use your wallet’s Private Keycode. With the NEAR Protocol wallet, you can join the Blockchain system that underpins the NEAR Protocol technology.
With the NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet, you cannot convert the amount of NEAR Protocol (NEAR) in your balance into real money. To convert your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) balance to real money you need to use a cryptocurrency exchange of your choice.
There are 3 types of NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets:
Desktop NEAR Protocol (NEAR) Wallets
They are wallet programs that you can download and use on your computer. The public and private keys of your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet are stored in your computer’s memory. Because it is a NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet connected to the Internet, it is vulnerable to dangers from the Internet. It is an ideal wallet for users who will be transferring Active NEAR Protocol (NEAR) and holding small amounts.
Paper NEAR Protocol (NEAR) Wallets
Paper (paper wallet) wallets are the papers on which the Public Key and Private Key of your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets are written. In Paper NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets, your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) address information is generally displayed as a QR code. Since it is a NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet without an internet connection, it is the most secure wallet against attacks that may come from the internet. You can create a specially designed Paper NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet, or you can create your own NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet information as a printout. Since it is a physical NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet and your wallet information is printed on it, if you lose your wallet, you may lose your entire NEAR Protocol (NEAR) balance.
Web (Online) NEAR Protocol (NEAR) Wallets
Web NEAR Protocol (NEAR) Wallets are a form of wallet in which your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) balances are maintained by wallet service providers. It is necessary to pay attention to the reliability of companies providing Web NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet services. They are NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets that you can have on cryptocurrency exchanges. The biggest advantage of Web NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets is that you can access and transact from anywhere you have an internet connection.
As soon as you become a member of a crypto exchange, a special NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet is created for you. With this NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet, you can deposit NEAR Protocol (NEAR) from other NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets to your own NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet and withdraw NEAR Protocol (NEAR) to other NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallets. You can log in to your crypto exchange account from anywhere you have an internet connection and perform your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet transactions.
A significant portion of your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) balance in your NEAR Protocol (NEAR) wallet in your crypto exchange account is kept in cold wallets. Cold wallets are private security wallets that do not have an internet connection. You can use NEAR Protocol (NEAR) to store your balance and you can buy and sell on your preferred crypto exchange whenever you want (using apps like crypto engines). You do not pay any fees for the wallet service you receive from the crypto exchange site.
How to calculate NEAR Protocol Price?
The price of NEAR Protocol generally varies according to the balance of supply and demand. NEAR Protocol is an ecosystem created by its users, and its current value changes according to the supply and demand balance of its users. As with real money values, it is not tied to any central bank or regulatory system.
NEAR Protocol is frequently used in buying/selling transactions in Cryptocurrency Exchanges due to the change in prices. Apart from buying/selling transactions, NEAR Protocol is seen by many users as an investment tool. They keep their NEAR Protocol balances in their NEAR Protocol Wallets.