Stacks Will Be the Decentralization Platform of Choice

I have been in crypto long enough (since 2011, I know you want to know) to know that there are devotees of every blockchain, DLT, acrylic graph, whatever other decentralization platform you can imagine is out there. And they all say theirs are the best.

But they are not. Because: they lack true decentralization, their currencies fluctuate wildly, they have weird token mechanisms, they aren’t legal to trade or operate freely in many countries (ahem, USA), and more.

But Stacks solves these issues. And not with a single silver bullet, but with a thoughtful and thorough approach they have been crafting for the last few years.

Bitcoin Adjacency

One of the key advantages to Stacks is that it uses Bitcoin for settlement and security. It essentially adds the ability to write smart contracts — which are limited on the Bitcoin chain — but allows to write contracts that encapsulate $BTC.

And because of this, their stacking methodology encourages saving their token, $STX, and earning $BTC interest for doing so (more on this later).

Intuitive and Useful Smart Contracts

For developers, a comprehensive site can teach you anything you need to know. The Clarity smart contract language is intuitive and easy to learn. Stacks is all about the decentralized internet and gives you the tools to make secure smart contracts that are at the heart of dapps — this code lives on the blockchain, not on any server, and is secured by Bitcoin.

Legitimate, Rational and Legal Token Economics

All of the coin offerings done by Blockstack (now called Hiro), were done SAFT compliant and are deemed legal through SEC. Their $STX token model meets the US government criteria for a utility token, and can thus be traded legally in the US (the majority of other governments don’t have as high a bar, generally speaking).

The Stacks token works on a PoX (Proof of Transfer) model. What this means is that miners will generate $STX tokens — the gas currency for executing smart contracts and moving tokens — but takes $BTC

Active Community

This project is well documented, offers grants to help projects get over the finish line (meet grantees) and many ways for miners, stakers, investors and builders to learn more. They have a Discord and Telegram, an active twitter presence, all of which can be used to meet others, find answers, and coalesce around this ecosystem.

Get Involved

Invest/Stack: To stack in the Stacks Wallet, you need 70,100 $STX, however,$STX can be traded and staked at OKCoin (note: if you use this referral link, you will get $15 in STX if you trade $100 in first 180 days).

Build: Check out their developer page or dive right into their github projects.

Apply for Grants: If you have an idea, learn more about grants on the Stacks Foundation grants page.