Contracts and Tokens
2018
This chapter covers the ability of some cryptocurrencies to encode contracts within a transaction. This feature, especially of contract-based cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum, has led to companies releasing tokens based on the blockchain, which hold the promise of some reward when the business performs well. Bitcoin and its derivative cryptocurrencies carry the ability to embed small amounts of data, whether code or text, to act as a contract. Bitcoin's ability to have multi-signature transactions means that both parties can sign the transaction, and it's then on the blockchain forever. Ethereum is being extensively used to launch funding campaigns for new products and services. This involves creating a type of contract called a token. The chapter looks at some of the Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) coming up at the time of writing includes a system based around a blockchain for finding return loads in the shipping industry or to enable non-technical people to create Ethereum contracts.