Stacks is a leading blockchain technology that combines Bitcoin (BTC) with smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps). These smart contracts are applied to Bitcoin without changing its security and stability properties.
These DApps are open and modular, allowing developers to build on the functionality of other DApps to provide features not possible with traditional DApps. Since Stacks uses Bitcoin as its base layer, all transactions on the network take place on Bitcoin, the most widely used and arguably the most secure blockchain.
What Are The Features Of The Stacks Network?
The Stacks token (STX) is used to execute smart contracts, conduct transactions, and register new digital assets on the Stacks 2.0 blockchain. The platform was previously called Blockscoin.
Blockstack was renamed Stacks in the fourth quarter of 2020 to “separate the ecosystem and open source project” from Blockstack PBC, the company that developed the original protocols.
In January 2021, the core Stacks 2.0 network was launched.
Who founded Stacks
Y Combinator, Digital Currency Group and Winklevoss Capital are among the major VC firms that originally backed Stacks. It was developed by New York-based Blockstack PBC.
Blockstack PBC is now known as Hiro Systems PBC and joins other companies based on the Stacks platform.
Blockstack PBC was founded by Muneeb Ali and Ryan Shea. Muneeb Ali, who holds a master’s degree in computer science and a doctorate in philosophy from Princeton University, developed Stacks in 2013 and continues to work on the platform as CEO of Hiro Systems PBC.
Ryan Shea, the site’s second co-founder, served as co-CEO from 2013 to 2018 before moving on to other ventures, including co-founding an obscure tech startup. Shea was a software developer before joining the Stacks team.
Why Is So Popular?
Stacks aims to add more functionality to the Bitcoin blockchain without mimicking or replacing the original Bitcoin network.
To this end, it connects directly to the Bitcoin blockchain via a proof-of-transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism that allows miners to pay with BTC to create new Stacks (STX) tokens. In addition, STX token holders can stack (not distribute) their tokens to earn bitcoin rewards.
Clarity, a new programming language for smart contracts offered by Stacks, is said to be secure and simple thanks to its open syntax. This programming language, which focuses on smart contracts, is also used by Algorand Blockchain (ALGO).
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