ICON project was founded in 2018 and has South Korean origin. Coins in the network have the designation ICX. In total, there are 800,460,000 ICX, all of them were created simultaneously at the launch of the project. A type of consensus protocol Delegated Proof of Stake is used, which is called Loop Fault Tolerance (LFT). This modification of DpoS allows you to update the system code without hardforks. Loopchain technology allows smart contracts to make transactions in real-time.
What are the technical features of ICON?
ICON uses the Blockchain Transmission Protocol (BTP) for communication between blockchains. The DAVinCI AI algorithm is designed to give ICON crypto nodes providers a fair reward. With the help of DEX exchange, a decentralized exchange between ICX tokens and other cryptocurrencies is possible. Thanks to SCORE (Smart Contract on Reliable Environment) technology it is possible to start and execute smart contracts without using a virtual machine.
How does the ICON crypto nodes provider work?
ICON relies on the cryptocurrencies nodes network to confirm transactions. Each installed wallet is a C-Node (Citizen Node), allowing you to send transactions and work with dapps. Also in the network, there are ICON nodes of higher level, Public Representatives (P-Reps). These are DpoS delegates who receive ICX tokens for transaction confirmation. In total there are 22 ICON nodes P-Reps. They are elected by voting, and to become one of the candidates, the ICON node must have on balance at least 0.2% of the total number of ICX tokens. The algorithm provides both awards for P-Rep ICON nodes and penalties in case of their malicious behavior.
How is the Delegated Proof of Stake algorithm implemented in the ICON network?
Ordinary users can entrust their ICX tokens to one of P-Reps ICON nodes. Their reward, proportional to the number of tokens, is calculated with AI using the DAVinCI algorithm. You can entrust your tokens to one of the P-Rep ICON nodes through the official ICONex wallet. There is also a plugin ICONex Wallet for Google Chrome and mobile wallets for iOS and Android. They also allow you to earn money on staking. The program code is configured in such a way that P-Rep ICON nodes can not use other people's funds for personal purposes. The reward is distributed by the ICON Foundation, issuing tokens P-Rep ICON nodes. The award is issued in internal I-Score tokens which have no value outside the platform. However, they can be exchanged for ICX tokens. You can start making money with any number of ICX tokens. Also, ICX tokens can be taken away from P-Rep ICON nodes at any time. Accrual of remuneration at the same time will immediately stop. However, to use their tokens will be possible only after a certain period of time. Depending on the load of the network, this period can be from 5 to 20 days.
Further development of ICON
Developers constantly release new versions of software for free ICON nodes and wallets. Among the innovations is the ICONick service which allows replacing the inconvenient sequence of letters and numbers in the wallet number with a unique nickname. Each user has one ICONick for one year free of charge. Users can sell short ICONick in the open market. Also, noteworthy is the ICONex wallet, which can store not only ICX tokens, but also other cryptocurrencies. And for those users who have difficulty earning ICX tokens by staking, there is a new service ICONFi. Also, ICONFi will allow you to store yields on BTC, ETH, USDT, and other crypto assets.
