By Nathan Ferguson
NEAR Protocol is a sharded blockchain that utilizes a Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism. It is the idea of ex-Google engineers Illia Polosukhin and Alexander Skidanov, launched in April 2020. Moreover, in its present form, NEAR is a blockchain originally developed as an experiment in machine learning and software synthesizing.
When Polosukhin and Skidanov began researching smart contracts and cryptocurrency technologies in 2018, they discovered that they could develop smart contracts. In August 2018, the duo made a move from software synthesis to NEAR Protocol development.
NEAR, like several other blockchains, is trying to solve the “Blockchain Trilemma.” the idea is that it’s hard to make a scalable, decentralized, and protected blockchain without having to compromise on either of these features. NEAR Protocol addresses the Blockchain Trilemma by providing sharding, a scalable capability. Sharding is dividing a blockchain node system into multiple, more manageable portions.
The network’s total performance may be increased by using several shards, each of which has its database and can be utilized in conjunction with others to complete operations. Because of its shard innovation, it promises to execute up to 100,000 transactions every second, significantly surpassing other competing smart contract services.
This is not the first time that sharding has been used. Ethereum also has plans to use sharding when Ethereum 2.0 is finished. Dynamic re-sharding is a new way to use the idea. To better meet the community’s needs, the number of shards enabled on NEAR will be dynamically adjusted rather than being fixed at a predetermined quantity.
NEAR Protocol follows the lead set by many other Proof-of-Stake networks regarding transaction costs. 4.5105 NEAR tokens, according to NEAR’s protocol description, are the fee of transmitting money, putting it on par with Solana’s transaction fees.
Staking validators who secure the system are rewarded in NEAR tokens proportionate to their aggregate stakes, like the Delegated Proof-of-Stake methods used by Solana and Avalanche. The majority of the tokens are distributed as incentives to validators, with the protocols creating new ones at a pace of 5% of the available quantity per year. A validator’s stake is slashed when they are found to be inactive, doing false validations, or engaging in any other malevolent action.
NEAR’s tokenomics also include a fee burn method, identical to Ethereum’s EIP-1559, to balance the 5% growth from validator incentives. NEAR burns 70% of the transaction cost; thus, it becomes increasingly competitive as the network’s use grows.
How Does the Near Protocol Work?
Like other “base-layer” blockchains such as Cardano, Ethereum, and TRON, NEAR serves as a platform for creating and implementing other apps. A technology Nightshade is used to achieve NEAR’s high-speed bandwidth. To increase the blockchain’s total transaction payload capacity, the scaling method uses separate groups of validators to execute transactions over several sharded chains simultaneously.
Sharding with this method is a little different from other blockchains since every shard creates just one piece of the next block. They are executed and permanently saved on the NEAR blockchain to complete the transaction.
It is designed to make things much easier for programmers while simultaneously providing users with a robust framework to use in developing next-generation apps. Developers may create advanced applications which can accept transactions on behalf of users using NEAR’s contract-based accounts architecture, enabling them to complete contracts without the user having to be there to ratify the transaction.
Nightshade
Using Nightshade Sharding, every node on the blockchain can only keep a tiny portion of the network’s information. There are several benefits to using sharding, including a more effective scaling of the blockchain and cheaper transaction costs.
Nightshade enables the NEAR Protocol to keep a single data chain but divide the computing needed to keep the data into “chunks.” Those chunks are managed by nodes, who analyze data and upload the data to the central chain. Whenever it concerns safety, the design of Nightshade provides for lesser possible places of failing since active nodes are only accountable for keeping shorter sections of the chain.
Rainbow Bridge
The NEAR Protocol features an application called the Rainbow Bridge, which enables users to seamlessly move Ethereum tokens from Ethereum to NEAR or Near to Ethereum. Users must first put Ethereum tokens into a smart contract on the Ethereum platform before they may transfer those tokens to the NEAR Protocol. A fresh set of tokens is then produced on NEAR’s platform to represent the originals.
If the user desires to reclaim their earlier tokens, as the initial money is stored in the smart contract, it is possible to undo the procedure.
Aurora
App developers may use Aurora to run their Ethereum-based decentralized apps on the NEAR networks since it is a Layer 2 scalable solution based on the NEAR Protocol.
Aurora is based on Ethereum’s coding language, the Ethereum Virtual Machine, and a cross-chain bridge that lets developers effortlessly integrate their smart contracts and assets. Using Aurora, programmers may make use of the cheap fees and fast speed of the NEAR Protocol while still using Ethereum’s expertise and extensive network of apps.
What is Near Token?
The NEAR token is the principal asset of the NEAR network, and its functioning is accessible to all users and accounts. Like Ether, each token is its digital asset which can be utilized for paying the system to perform transactions and store data—participating actively in the staking phase by operating a validation node as a member of the blockchain network.
Participation in governance mechanisms affects the distribution of network services and the technical direction of the network in the long term. The NEAR token allows the financial collaboration of all network participants.
Features of Near Protocol
NEAR Protocol is a highly progressive user experience (UX) that enables any newbie to connect to the network without having to contend with wallets or tokens. As the user becomes more acquainted with the blockchain’s underlying ideas, the UX may get more advanced.
Account setup enables a smoother registration experience with minimal phases.
NEAR Protocol consensus can be another way to use delegated proof – of – stake. It’s called “Thresholded Proof of Stake,” and it’s one of the ways people can use it. Delegators can put their tokens in a pool operated by the contract controllers and give them to a specific validator. Therefore, validators may provide a larger range of options, making NEAR more desirable to users.
Developers will only create apps if their users use them. By postponing onboarding, minimizing the requirement for users to learn blockchain notions, and restricting the number of approved interactions the user must participate in, the application may be considered more customer-oriented.
User-centered design is at the heart of the Near Protocol, which advocates an ‘advance security’ concept and enables developers to build comfortable web-like experiences for users. According to its official papers, the Near platform is designed to be ‘user-centric’ by offering quick registration, easy subscription, regular use patterns, and consistent costing.
Developers may verify and settle operations on their clients’ accounts, reducing the technical expertise necessary to use decentralized applications and making them highly acceptable to customers. NEAR also provides developers toolkits that let developers construct applications and smart contracts that use a range of coding. Consequently, the platform may attract a greater range of programmers who do not want to learn a blockchain-specific language.
Last but not least, when smart contracts are used in a large number of apps, programmers become eligible to get a portion of the transaction cost every time the contract is activated. This technique encourages developers to make broader contributions to the network.
Wallet for the NEAR Protocol
The NEAR Protocol Wallet may be set up in a matter of minutes. The NEAR Protocol Wallet would need to be financed with at least 3 NEAR tokens after several basic stages of establishing an account and verifying personal data. The Wallet and the new User ID are created at no expense. Names of wallet accounts that end in “. near” will be used.
In order to utilize the NEAR Protocol Wallet, you don’t precisely need to know much about Bitcoin or blockchains in general. The Account ID and the account’s initial, maximum, and accessible balances are all shown on the account’s main page. On the top, a user’s preferred mode of recovery and two-factor verification is shown. You can choose them in the initial stage. NEAR tokens may be sent, received, or staked using the icons at the top of the page.
A few examples of projects using NEAR.
In the last few years, NEAR Protocol has received much attention from both within and beyond the blockchain industry. The NEAR ecosystem has developed dramatically during this era, and numerous innovative and interesting initiatives have embraced it.
- The Flux Protocol
To make it as easy as possible for developers to create markets on anything, Flux has developed an open protocol. Developing an open-source program that is innovative, simple, and adaptable is the core of that goal. The NEAR Wallet provides the basis for the Flux open-sourced application. Web2 users will find NEAR Wallet to be a simpler and more comfortable non-custodial wallet in the form of a browser plugin since it permits usernames to be used for addresses.
- Mintbase
Mintbase is a kind of Amazon-like marketplace. It allows any participant, even those with minimal technical ability, to build and promote their personalized virtual content through their smart contract. The normal fee for interacting with smart contracts may occasionally exceed the expected digits. The Mintbase team looked for an alternative platform and found NEAR Protocol due to these disadvantages.
- Paras
NFT marketplace Paras specializes in digital artifacts and crafts. They depend upon introducing regular items to the cryptocurrency space. They began with digital art cards, which were influenced by actual trading cards, which have shown to be indestructible and timeless since their introduction in the 1980s. They think that every single tangible art form has to be kept and digitized to maintain it future-proof.
Where and how can you purchase NEAR?
You’ll require NEAR tokens if you wish to become engaged with NEAR or use any of the dapps launched on the NEAR platform.
The easiest method to obtain NEAR tokens is to purchase them through a recognized exchange platform, such as Binance, Huobi Global, or OKEx, rather than engaging in research initiatives or mining.
We’ll show you how to purchase them using Tether (USDT) on Binance, presently the most popular NEAR exchange.
Step 1: Signup on Binance and fund your account using USDT or any accepted cryptocurrency. According to Binance’s current policy, NEAR may be exchanged for any following currencies: USDT, BTC, BUSD, and BNB (BNB).
Step 2: Go to your chosen Binance NEAR market, such as NEAR/USDT or NEAR/BTC.
Step 3: This is where you’ll discover the Binance trading platform. After that, go down to the order panel and click on ‘Market.’
Step 4: When you select ‘Buy NEAR,’ your transaction will be executed at the best possible price for the USDT you entered. NEAR will be transferred into your Binance account, which you may then transfer, trade or exchange.
NEAR has improved its interoperability with current networks by using Aurora Network. Aurora network is a protocol that is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine. Allbridge or Rainbow Bridge may be used to instantly transfer cash from the NEAR Protocol and other Layer 1 blockchains to Aurora.
There has already been $412 million in combined worth locked in Trisolaris, Aurora’s primary decentralized exchange, which can trade for a wide range of tokens based on Ethereum. Octopus Network is also another initiative to improve NEAR’s compatibility with other blockchains. Octopus Network smart contracts placed on NEAR will verify app chains, a network of application chains that will be interoperable.
Octopus Network is developed to be interoperable with other NEAR-based tokens and the Inter-Blockchain Communication interface, which opens the door to a wave of different cross-chain opportunities. Earlier this year, NEAR established an $800 million funding in order to encourage developers to create on NEAR and its ancillary networks, Aurora and Octopus, respectively. The major question is whether or not NEAR will replicate the success of the DeFi upstarts of 2021.
Price Prediction and Future Outlook of Near Protocol
In the realm of Cryptocurrency, every platform with its blockchain has witnessed enormous development. When looking at the top 20 rated cryptocurrencies in the market, practically every currency does have its blockchain, including Ethereum and LUNA and AVAX and SOL, and many more. This is due to the fact that significant investors have faith in a secure blockchain network.
Additionally, to the factors stated before, it should be highlighted that NEAR Protocol was created by a former Wall St executive with extensive entrepreneurship expertise, with co-founders Illia Poposukhin and Alexander Skidanov having previously served at Google and Microsoft. It’s obvious to see why investors are so excited about the NEAR Protocol’s potential, given that it’s led by a team that includes both business-minded individuals and technically inclined experts.
The NEAR token was introduced in late 2020 and has since increased by more than 2500%, with the all-time peak of $16.33 reached on December 27, 2021. With a glance at the NEAR graph, it is clear that the NEAR token has had a steady increase in value since the bear market ended in May 2021, peaking at $16 this month after first trading at $8.
Additionally, the weekly graph of the NEAR coin looks to be positive, with its RSI holding around 60. This may be an excellent moment to participate in trading Near since many cryptocurrency specialists are anticipating a price climb to $50 in the coming months. Cryptocurrency like bitcoin, on the other hand, is incredibly unpredictable at this time, and its recent downturn from the 50k zone is also a bad indicator. So, it is best to contact crypto professionals before trading in any of the cryptocurrencies at this moment.
NEAR Tokenomics
NEAR is the Near Protocol token, and it fuels the activity inside the Near Protocol network.
At this moment, there are 394,718,621 NEAR tokens in circulation, out of a total of 1,000,000,000 available. The total number of NEAR tokens produced at the moment of creation was 1,000,000,000. 1.14 million core contributors received 14.1 million tokens or 17.2 percent of NEAR’s total token supply upon its creation. As a reward for their support, Near Protocol backers were entitled to 17.2% of the total quantity of NEAR tokens.
In contrast to the early ecosystem participants who got 11.7% of NEAR’s supply, the Near Protocol foundation endowments received just 10%. Approximately 12% of NEAR’s supplies were designated for community sale, with the remaining 6.1% reserved for small projects supporters.
Conclusion
It’s no wonder that numerous individuals choose to work on the NEAR blockchain, which has transaction costs up to 10,000 times cheaper than Ethereum. The NEAR collective presently has more than 150 founders and more than Sixty collaborators throughout the globe. It’s very simple for non-technical individuals to join the NEAR Protocol Wallet.
Several developers are also using NEAR Protocol to construct a wide variety of blockchain protocols. Among them are open market platforms, smart contract-capable blockchains, NFT markets, and many more possibilities!