Syscoin is “a global network, a distributed ledger, a decentralized database and a blockchain. It is also a cryptocurrency, an altcoin, a digital currency and a tradable token.” Originally launched in late 2014 and created through a Bitcoin fork, the current version brings us to Syscoin 2.1 and has an algorithm that allows it to be merge-mined with Bitcoin. Merge mining is simply the ability for miners to simultaneously mine two different cryptocurrencies based on the same algorithm. The project attempts to remove the middleman and put money directly back into merchants/consumers hands, eliminating hefty fees currently charged by big corporations like Amazon and eBay. To facilitate near-zero fee transactions, you can use its native cryptocurrency, Syscoin (SYS), to pay for goods on the marketplace. However, you can also pay using alternate cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Zcash. Syscoin is led by a team of developers and was created by its current core developer, Sebastian Schepis. According to Proof of Developer, a website that verifies, evaluates, and ranks developer teams, Syscoin received 5 stars in 2014. Blockchain Foundry maintains Syscoin as its flagship product, with a mission to “disrupt markets by leveraging the potential of blockchain technology”. In March of 2017, Blockchain Foundry partnered with the Microsoft Azure ecosystem and is one of the founding members of the Digital Identity Foundation (DIF). Other founding members of the DIF include the likes of corporate giants such as Microsoft, Accenture, ConsenSys, and more. Syscoin’s blockchain delivers faster speeds along with lower transaction fees than its predecessor, Bitcoin. It can support 750 tps, and with the upcoming masternode release, it will support more than 300,000 tps. For now, it’s one of the cheapest cryptocurrencies regarding transaction fees (behind zero-fee transaction cryptocurrencies such as NEO and NANO), even cheaper than XRP.' Some of the features highlighted on the SysCoin website includes :- 1. Buy/Selling goods on the blockchain 2. Brokerage on the blockchain 3. Issue and trade certificates on the blockchain 4. Merged Mining
Enigma is a crypto platform that’s trying to solve the problem of privacy on the blockchain by giving them access to much-needed storage, privacy, and scalability. Enigma wants to extend Ethereum Smart Contracts by introducing secret contracts, a brand of smart contract that gives users an element of privacy that’s not intrinsic to current blockchain protocols. These contracts operate off-chain, meaning the execution of the Smart Contract doesn’t occur on the Ethereum blockchain itself. This is how the Enigma protocol works: it breaks up the Smart Contract and any related data into pieces, encrypts those pieces, and distributes them redundantly among Enigma nodes. Enigma has a protocol level. The Enigma privacy protocol allows for decentralized computation of sensitive data. It has a platform layer too. On this protocol, dozens of platforms such as data marketplaces and AI exchanges can be built. In its application layer, it enables thousands of truly decentralized apps that require private computation and secure data.Its first application is catalyst. Catalyst is the first application to be built on the Enigma protocol, already active with tens of thousands of users. Catalyst is a revolutionary platform for data-driven cryptoasset investing and research, built for professional crypto traders. Enigma has a team of MIT graduates, and they’ve been working diligently to ensure Enigma’s success. Guy Zyskind, Enigma’s CEO and cofounder, helped start the project while he was still a student at MIT. He has more than a decade of software development experience with an M.S. from MIT. Sandy Pentland, a well known MIT data scientist who gained fame for his work in data-mining social interactions, is Zyskind and Nathan’s adviser on Enigma. With other advisors such as Alex Pentland, who sits on the Advisory Boards for Google and Nissan, CEO of Abra, Bill Barhydt and director of MIT media lab, Prof. Alex Pentland, it is hard to difficult a fault in the team.