What Is Bancor (BNT)?Bancor consists of a series of smart contracts that manage the on-chain conversion of tokens. The protocol makes it effortless and quick to convert tokens without having to go through an exchange. The protocol's smart contracts manage the liquidity pools that connect various tokens available in the network.
The major token used on the network is the “Bancor Network Token,” BNT. Currently, Bancor and Uniswap are the frontrunners for this new DeFi trend.
Who Are the Founders of Bancor?Bancor was founded by Eyal Hertzog, Yudi Levi, and Galia and Guy Benartzi in 2017. It was named "Bancor" to honour John Maynard Keynes, who came up with the word 76 years ago to describe a supranational currency.
Eyal Hertzog is the product architect of the protocol, BNT, and other products that utilize the network. He is a known voice in the crypto industry and has been a technology entrepreneur for over 20 years. He previously founded MetaCafe, a top video sharing site in Israel with over 50 million users.
Guy Benartzi is the chief executive at Bancor. He also co-founded Mytopia in 2005, a company that develops cross-platform games for users on social networks.
Galia Benartzi has been a technology entrepreneur for many years, and is a co-founder of the Bancor protocol. At Bancor, she is the business developer. She is also the CEO and founder of Particle Code.
Yudi Levi is the CTO at Bancor. He has been a technology entrepreneur for over 20 years. He previously co-founded AppCoin, an app that allows communities to create their own currencies.
What Makes Bancor Unique?Bancor enables the seamless conversion of tokens used in the network. This removes the need for an exchange or third-party platforms. The protocol also maintains several self-governing pools for tokens supported by the network.
The uniqueness of Bancor is in their goal to create liquidity for altcoins and to remunerate liquidity providers. The protocol monotonously converts various crypto tokens into other tokens, including those running on other blockchains, without the interference of a third party.
BNT, the protocol’s main token, is the default for all smart tokens created on the network. Bancor’s creation of smart tokens is the first of its kind to be built via blockchain technology. The protocol’s main objective for creating smart tokens is to provide a lasting solution to liquidity problems, hence making it different from other market makers.
How Many Bancor (BNT) Coins Are In Circulation?In January, Bancor made a move to provide more liquidity and awareness for its native token. Therefore, it distributed some ETH/BNT valued at $60,000 into various wallets that were holding a required minimum of BNT. In 2017, the protocol raised more than $144M during its initial coin offering.
The protocol allows other tokens to be liquidated as well. However, these tokens (also called reserve tokens) must comply with ERC-20 or EOS standards.
Bancor ecosystem supports a two-way token model: liquid tokens and relay tokens.
A liquid token is an automated token with a single reserve that mints and destroys itself. It does this either by sending the reserve token to its smart contract or removing it from the smart contract. In order to use Bancor Network, a liquid token must have its reserve token either in BNT or a derivative of BNT.
On the other hand, relay tokens are used in staking to provide liquidity. The token holders will get a percentage of the future earnings of Bancor. Relay tokens indicate the proportion of amount staked to the total value in the pool.
How Is The Bancor Network Secured?The protocol’s smart token allows traders to provide liquidity for the pools available on the network. Anyone can contribute liquidity to the pools.
When liquidity providers contribute liquidity to a pool, they are eligible to receive rewards for trades that pass through the pool. Liquidity providers will receive pool tokens that represent a percentage of their total stake.
How Can You Buy Bancor Network Token (BNT)?As at the time of this writing, Bancor has facilitated over $2 billion trades involving several tokens, as well as cross-chain tokens. The network has made millions through staking, which are distributed to BNT token stakers. Several exchanges that support BNT include Binance, Coinswitch and ZenGo. You can get more information here on how to buy BNT and other cryptocurrencies.
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