Wallet

Blockchain

A distributed, immutable digital ledger that records transactions across a network of computers without a central authority.

Distributed Ledger Technology

A digital system for recording, sharing, and synchronising data across multiple sites without a central administrator.

Consensus Mechanism

The method by which a distributed network agrees on the current state of the ledger and validates transactions.

Proof of Work

A consensus mechanism requiring computational effort to validate transactions and create new blocks, used by Bitcoin.

Proof of Stake

A consensus mechanism where validators are selected based on the amount of cryptocurrency they hold and stake.

Delegated Proof of Stake

A consensus mechanism where token holders vote for delegates who validate transactions on their behalf.

Byzantine Fault Tolerance

The ability of a distributed system to reach consensus despite some nodes acting maliciously or failing.

Merkle Tree

A hash-based data structure that efficiently verifies the integrity and consistency of large sets of data.

Hash Function

A mathematical function that converts input data of any size into a fixed-size output, used extensively in blockchain security.

Cryptographic Hash

A one-way function producing a fixed-length output that is computationally infeasible to reverse or find collisions for.

Public Key Cryptography

An encryption system using mathematically linked key pairs — a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption.

Digital Signature

A cryptographic mechanism that verifies the authenticity and integrity of digital messages or documents.

The guarantee that all data required to verify blockchain transactions is accessible to network participants, a critical requirement for the security of rollup-based scaling solutions.

A blockchain network where participation is restricted to authorised entities, common in enterprise applications.

Locking up cryptocurrency holdings to support blockchain network operations and earn rewards.

An offline cryptocurrency storage solution disconnected from the internet for maximum security.

Self-executing programs stored on a blockchain that automatically enforce the terms of an agreement when conditions are met.

An application that runs on a decentralised peer-to-peer network rather than a single centralised server.

A divergence in a blockchain's protocol or chain, creating two separate paths — can be hard (incompatible) or soft (backward-compatible).

The vision of a decentralised internet built on blockchain technology, giving users ownership and control of their data.