NEM is a highly versatile crypto solution which seeks to adhere to a host of mainstream industry requirements. It is written in Java and JavaScript with 100% original source code. NEM has a stated goal of a wide distribution model and has introduced new features in blockchain technology in its proof-of-importance (POI) algorithm. NEM also features an integrated P2P secure and encrypted messaging system, multisignature accounts and an Eigentrust++ reputation system. Essentially, NEM is designed as a financial blockchain solution and can be used for payment, clearing and settlement in a private environment which is highly controlled. This means that NEM meets several of the regulatory requirements and guidelines in the financial industry. This allows it to be used to settle (change of ownership) any asset via the blockchain. Mijin which is a private chain of NEM has gained popularity and companies such as Hitachi have already embraced it. Why NEM? Many banks around the world have come to accept the importance of blockchain technology. In fact, a good number of banks in the U.S, India and Japan have already started using the technology. Because banks generally employ the smart contract concept, NEM’s platform which is asset-friendly can be used to settle any asset. In settling assets, speed, security, and reliability are very important to a mainstream institution which is what this crypto offers. NEM addresses these issues by repackaging its blockchain into a private chain and presenting it as Mijin. NEM crypto is also applicable in the technology world. Unlike Bitcoin and Dogecoin which use mining to increase the number of coins, XEM uses something called ‘harvesting’. In this process, blocks are generated and a person is rewarded for work contributed using transaction fees. Every block has a certain number of transactions which attract an unknown amount of fees. This keeps the participants incentivized to continue harvesting. For a blockchain user to be allowed to harvest, one must go through a forging mechanism process called Proof-of-Importance (POI). POI is the algorithm used in NEM to time stamp transactions. A NEM user's importance is determined by how many coins they have and the number of transactions made to and from their wallet. POI uses the NCDawareRank network centrality measure, the topology of the transaction graph, as well as a number of other relevant signals to achieve consensus. POI is different from other initiatives which use a fee-sharing model that does not take into consideration one's overall support of the network. In proof-of-stake systems a person needs to have large numbers of coins to form a block, but in NEM transactions volume and trust become factors. This was designed to encourage users of NEM to not simply hold XEM but instead actively carry out transactions. To be eligible for entering the importance calculation, an account must have at least 10,000 vested XEM. All accounts owning more than 10,000 vested XEM have a non-zero importance score. With a supply of 8,999,999,999 XEM, the theoretical maximum number of accounts with non-zero importance is 899,999. In practice, the number of actual accounts with non-zero importance is not expected to approach the theoretical max due to inequalities in held XEM and also the temporal costs associated with vesting. If NEM becomes very popular, a threshold of 10,000 vested XEM could be undesirable. If necessary, this number could be updated in the future via a hard fork, which is the same procedure for adjusting transaction fees and other parameters related to harvesting.
Blue Whale Foundation, The Decentralized Ecosystem for the Self-Employed Blue Whale is set to rock the gig economy’s boat by building a decentralized ecosystem to allow freelancers and the self-employed to reap rewards and employment benefits from their contributions Against the backdrop of technological disruption and offshoring, the “gig/sharing economy” is burgeoning globally. Freelancers will make up a whopping 58% of the US workforce by 2027. Consequently, peer-to-peer booking platforms like AirBnB and Uber have seen a meteoric rise in demand accompanying these shifts in the job market. As the definition of work changes and evolves, the difficulties encountered by freelancers and part-time workers such as the lack of protection, and the insecurity of self-employment will only worsen. This not only affects the growing mass of freelancers, but also ruptures the social contract between workers and governments. Consumer protections have also weakened because of the murky legal relationship between freelancers and their host platforms. This simmering dissatisfaction has created popular backlash, as concerned governments in several countries such as France have begun to crack down on platforms like Uber and AirBnB. Despite these worrying trends, no workable remedy has been proposed - until now. The Blue Whale Foundation’s ICO is set to rock the boat of the gig/sharing economy by leveraging on blockchain as a service to provide freelancers with employment benefits such as paid-time-off, and retirement pensions traditionally available only to salaried employees.