After two years of development and testing, Faircoin’s blockchain is ready to change its consensus algorithm from Proof of Stake (PoS) to Proof of Cooperation (PoC). The PoC protocol has been argued to present significant advantages, in relation to energy consumption and control by its community.
The following post has been published by FairCoop on 18.07.
Have you ever asked yourself why bitcoin uses such a huge amount of electricity? And why it is controlled by a small amount of mining farms? The new version of Faircoin is the complete opposite in that sense: it barely needs energy to confirm transactions (nodes can work with minimalist hardware, such as Raspberry Pi3 and similar) or to guarantee the security of the system. In addition, the use and distribution of FairCoin are based on social justice and equality criteria.
Unlike other cryptocurrencies, Faircoin 2 doesn’t involve mining or minting systems, which are based on competition. Transaction blocks are generated by Cooperatively Validated Nodes (CVNs). These nodes cooperate to maintain the security of the network. This is why we call the system Proof of Cooperation.
Faircoin is becoming the essential digital currency for a totally decentralized payments system that uses the minimum possible amount of processing power. Faircoin is the currency of a system that is being accepted by more and more people. It’s the basis for FairCoop, FairMarket, FreedomCoop and also now for Bank of the Commons an alternative banking cooperative of which Faircoop is one of the founders.
Faircoin is the fundamental element of a system that facilitates currency transfers at very low or zero cost between continents, countries, users and also between ordinary bank accounts. In the Faircoin ecosystem, collective intelligence creates useful tools that people can share, including point of sale systems for merchants, prepaid cards, instant currency exchange, exchanges to euros via ATMs, payment of direct receipts and all the banking services that have until now been in the hands of an elite.
Micropayments are an important tool to meet the needs of people’s real economies and for its use in regions and societies where money is scarce. Faircoin’s high network efficiency, the relationship between trusted nodes, minimal energy costs and, consequently very low transaction fees make Faircoin one of the best currencies for micropayments.
On the 18th July 2017, the 53.193.831 Faircoin in circulation was transferred to a new blockchain. From that date on no more coins will be created. This way, being a finite good it is anticipated that its value in respect to other currencies will grow alongside the progressive extension of its use in the real economy. This will be a big incentive to the community of Faircoin users and allowing for a level of self-management that will allow us to become progressively empowered to face the capitalist system based on infinite growth and loss of people’s purchasing power, in a constant struggle for the distribution of resources in the hands of a few.
Faircoin is an open, horizontal self-organized currency. The community decides, based on a previously established consensus in the online economic strategies group, when and in what proportion a revaluation should be realized. It is a transparent process according to the current situation. So it is a completely stable currency, which cannot be devalued and is absolutely reliable for its community of users in personal or commercial transactions. Its algorithm is based on Proof of Cooperation and contributes to the distribution of wealth by preventing the richest from producing more and more coins and getting richer and richer. It is probably the most important technological innovation in the field of blockchain technologies since the creation of Bitcoin. This outstanding contribution doesn’t come from a company or group of people with private interests but from a social movement!
“We have been planning, developing and testing the cryptographic algorithm for two years. Now is the time to switch to a Proof-of-Cooperation system, which is the most stable and trustworthy concept ever seen in the world of Blockchain.”
Thomas König, Faircoin’s lead developer.
One-fifth of all circulating faircoin were bought by Enric Duran in 2014 and donated to FairCoop. With the value generated by cooperative activity and for the common good, today its value already exceeds one million euros, and remain in a communal wallet used for various FairCoop social funds, such as the commons fund or the global south fund. With FairCoop, an entire self-sustaining ecosystem for a fair economy is being built.
“With FairCoop, we are building a partnership based on cooperation and mutual support. In this way, FairCoin is showing itself to be a key tool, with which to interconnect globally and finance the transition. With the arrival of the “Proof of Cooperation”, the code stands at an equal level to our political vision “
Enric Durán, activist in cooperative ecosystems and alternative economies.
unless you create new coins as the Faircoin economy grows the currency will suffer from deflation. This is even worse than inflation. People will be incentivised to hoard their coins as an investment that will grow in value and not spend them. I appreciate the problem with mining in Bitcoin has seen some people get very rich through mining but not creating new currency is not the answer. Even though Bitcoin has created some new currency it has not been enough to keep up with the growth in usage and Bitcoin has suffered from massive deflation. Need to find a way to create currency linked to usage…