In our last article, we introduced WASM-related issues during INT Mainnet 4.0 development. In this article, we will discuss the application of smart contracts.
In the cryptocurrency world, we define smart contracts as applications or programs that run on the blockchain. Generally, they are a set of digital protocols with specific rules, which are enforced on the network. These rules are predefined by computer source code, which is copied and executed by all network nodes. The Bitcoin protocol supports smart contracts, and it has become even more popular since Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, made Ethereum the most advanced platform to support them. Smart contracts have many features such as being deterministic, real-time, autonomous, observable, verifiable, and decentralized. Also, smart contracts have broad application prospects in digital payments, financial assets, cloud computing, the Internet of Things, and the shared economy.
Digital identity
Smart contracts allow users to build user-centric personal networks with their digital identity, such as personal digital reputation and digital assets. The NBA Nets players Spencer Dinwiddie issued the first personal crypto bond of a professional player in history, which we now refer to as a "social token”. Among the social tokens, WHALE, with the highest market capitalization, is worth more than $43 million. When diluted, it has a market capitalization of over $100 million. Smart contracts can also specify which personal data could be shared with others, automating the processing of records, improving data transparency and reducing service costs.
Security
The securities process is digitalized based on smart contracts. It used for capitalized equity structure management and greatly simplify its process, such as supporting private companies to pay dividends, stock splits, and liability management automatically. Blockchain securities company (Symbiont) promotes the use of encrypted blockchain signatures for stock certificates.
Finance trade
Smart contracts simplify international commodity transfers process for higher asset liquidity. Initiating credit certification and trade payment process automatically will create a more efficient and less risky process between customers, suppliers and financial institutions. In addition, smart contracts ensure transaction security. When the condition triggers the execution condition of the smart contract, it is automatically executed according to a previously target and cannot be withdrawn or terminated once executed, thus ensuring the safety of both parties' assets. In the event of a conflict, these immutable records can be used to trace the execution of the contract at that time and provide strong evidence for conflict resolution.
Internet of Things
Using smart contracts to create a service market between devices and create a decentralized and shared economic application that not only protects privacy but also reflects the value of digital assets, while promoting the sharing of services and resources. At present, Internet of Things (IoT) includes billions of nodes that share data through the Internet, applications that integrate the IoT, blockchain, and smart contract, physical devices supported by the IoT or personal properties. Currently in China, people can rent, sell or share some devices, such as shared bicycles, shared power banks, and shared cars, without intermediaries.
Supply-chain
Smart contracts can provide greater visibility for every cycle in the supply chain, simplify multiple institutional systems, coordinate with IoT devices, track managed assets and products, and reduce the risk of fraud and theft. For example, Everledger and IBM have used blockchain in the supply chain to increase its visibility.
Smart insurance
Insurance contracts under the smart contract system are all digitized, stored in the blockchain ledger, and cannot be tampered with. At the same time, the insurance claims process is automated to improve the efficiency of processing. Insurance business based on smart contracts can provide intelligent customization services, which can automatically match the best insurance plan according to the type of insurance, time, term, claims history, etc., greatly reducing the service costs of the traditional insurance industry. For example, we can use smart contracts to record driver conditions, driving records, laws and regulations. When a traffic accident occurs, relevant data is automatically uploaded to the Internet, and the contract automatically executes the process of verification, claim and compensation. The insured’s driving records, vehicle conditions, and past accidents are all recorded in the database. The smart contract automatically retrieves relevant data to process insurance events.
Distributed computing
Distributed computing based on smart contracts has broad application prospects and practical significance. There are tens of thousands of nodes with computing power around the world that access digital currency networks (such as the Bitcoin network) for mining. A distributed computing network can intelligently match nodes (computing resource suppliers) and customers (computing resource demanders), fully develop and utilize existing network computing resources, simplify computing service process, and reduce computing service costs.
2020 witnessed the birth of many well-known Defi projects across a wide range of industries, but the core of the projects were all liquidity mining projects based on smart contracts. Uniswap, a decentralized exchange, breaks the dependence of users on centralized exchanges, and will be more widely used in the future for more specific and detailed places. In addition, the NFT (non-fungible tokens) involved in the field of encrypted collections and the social tokens are gradually getting more development opportunities, and these specific applications are also good development directions.
Conclusion
We are upgrading the performance of INT mainnet 4.0, which will be faster, have lower fees, be suitable for high-frequency trading, and enable the development of more complex smart contract applications. We look forward to developing different types of smart contract applications in different use-cases and industries in the INT ecosystem to fulfil specific development needs, solve practical problems, and aim for wider application adoption.
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