Stacks (formerly Blockstack) is a Bitcoin Layer for smart contracts. It enables smart contracts and decentralized applications to use Bitcoin as an asset and settle transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Unique features of Stacks:
Besides regularly storing a hash of the Stacks blockchain on Bitcoins, many of the node participants in the blockchain will receive rewards in BTC.
All transactions on the Stacks layer are automatically hashed and settled on Bitcoin.
STX is the native token of the project. The current use cases for STX include:
Governance: Stacks is a fully decentralized ecosystem where all governance occurs with STX holders. Anyone can contribute to open source through working groups.
Stacking: A way to support the network’s security & consensus by temporarily locking STX and earning BTC. BTC is a core component of Stacks Mining. Miners earn new STX from inflation and they pay to participate in BTC.
The project consists of the following major components working in conjunction:
Proof of Transfer: A hybrid consensus mechanism knowledge of the full Bitcoin state. It recycles Bitcoin’s Proof of Work to achieve both high levels of decentralization and scalability without additional environmental impact.
Clarity: A decidable smart contracts language that optimizes for predictability and security by design
sBTC: sBTC powers smart contracts on Bitcoin, secured by the hash power of Bitcoin. It allows users to write back to Bitcoin smart contracts directly.
As of March 22nd, 2023, the maximum token supply of STX is 1,818,000,000. The current circulating supply is 1,367,321,275 (75.21% of the max token supply).
Learn more about the token distribution of STX here.