20 Best Blockchain Platforms to Know

If you are familiar with Ethereum, you most likely associate it with ETH, its cryptocurrency, and recognize it as a tool for buying, trading and cryptocurrency staking. Ethereum is both of these things plus one more: A blockchain platform.

What is a Blockchain Platform?

Blockchain platforms are entities with scripting languages ​​that are intricate and robust enough to create and manage a variety of Web3 functions, including but hardly limited to NFTs, initiation and execution of transactions and creation of smart contracts. Smart contracts are actually believed to be the first non-cryptocurrency use of a blockchain platform, and that platform was Ethereum.

Many blockchain platforms are products of and supported by non-profit foundations, as is the case with a number of cryptocurrencies, among them Ethereum, Tron, Ripple, Stellar, Solana and Polkadot.

20 Blockchain Platforms to Know

Avalanche

Avalanche, which calls itself the fastest smart contract platform in the industry, says it gives users the ability to quickly and affordably build decentralized apps; scales quickly with minimal hardware; and launching custom, private and public blockchains, according to its website. It’s also energy-efficient, boasting CPU-optimal energy efficiency, meaning computers will stay relatively cool while using the platform.

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Binance Smart Chain

“Build Web3 on the blockchain with the most users,” promises Binance Smart Chain, an arm of Binance, which also maintains a cryptocurrency and a crypto trading platform. The site says the platform is suitable for building gaming and decentralized finance apps, and offers tutorials for developers new to blockchain.

Cardano

This open, proof-of-stake platform says it is the first based on peer-reviewed research. The goal is to “be an enabling force for positive change and progress,” according to the website. Use cases include verifying credentials such as diplomas; establishing provenances to prevent the online sale of counterfeit luxury goods; and support stakeholders along food production chain, from farmers to retailers.

Chain analysis KYT

Chain analysis KYT’s website describes its user-friendly interface, real-time API (application programming interface) and first-class intelligence. Chainalysis Data encompasses thousands of services, including scams and darknet offerings, that can affect blockchain security.

ConsenSys quorum

Quorum, one of six products offered by software company Ethereum ConsenSys, bills itself as “the complete open source blockchain platform for business.” Quorum’s range of products includes a fully managed ledger service, Enterprise Key Management for security and consolidation of accounts and key management; and Tessera, a private transaction manager, according to the ConsenSys website. ConsenSys founder Joseph Lubin co-founded Ethereum.

EOSIO

Eosio calls itself the “leading open source platform” for enterprises and developers using blockchain. The website describes the platform as fast and flexible, allows for scalability and is highly configurable, offering developers a selection of tools and resources. Eosio’s foundation in C++ provides a “highly configurable” environment for both private and public networks.

Ethereum

Ethereum, which also has a coin (ETH) is a blockchain platform for all things Web3including NFTs, decentralized finance, decentralized social networks and crypto staking. The open source technology website for developers offers a list of tutorials useful for learning Web3 tools, including blockchain and smart contracts.

Hyperledger fabric

“Open, proven, enterprise grade DLT” (distributed ledger platform, also known as blockchain), touts the website for this open source platform. The platform enables modular architecture, making it ideal for many applications. The platform also has the ability to create a “network of networks” that makes security (or lack thereof) an option in transactions involving multiple parties. IBM is one of the most important R&D Contributors to Hyperledger Fabric.

Hyperledger Sawtooth

Like Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Sawtooth is a product of the open source Hyperledger Foundation. Unlike Fabric, which only offers blockchain permission, Sawtooth supports both permissioned and permissionless networks, according to various sources. Developed by Linux with assistance from IBM, Intel and SAP, Sawtooth is an example of BaaS, or blockchain-as-a-service.

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IBM Blockchain

This blockchain platform from the tech mainstay IBM offers “reliable data exchange and workflow automation beyond the boundaries of distributed ledger technology and blockchain,” its website says. These in turn enable operational flexibility and the possibilities for new income streams, says the company.

Klaytn

“The metaverse blockchain for all,” trumpets the website for this open source platform, which plans to be the platform of choice for the gaming world. Parent Klaytn Foundation, headquartered in Singapore, recently announced integration with cross-chain system Wormhole. The foundation also maintains a $1 billion fund to support projects and apps built on Klaytn.

Multiple chain

This platform has super-fast tools for creating and distributing blockchain apps, according to the Multichain website. Users can make blockchains as open or closed (using permissions) as they want; adapt the blockchains with optional proof-of-work consensus; and design and build blockchains “with minimal hassle,” the website says.

Polka dot

“This is blockchain untethered,” Polkadot’s website declares, referring to its parachain and cross-chain capabilities. Parachains, short for parallel chains because they run parallel to the relay chain, are custom-made, customizable blockchains, designed for a specific project, Polkadot’s website explains. Parachains can be used for decentralized finance apps, IoT apps, digital wallets, games and Web3 infrastructure, the website said.

R3 Corda

Corda, a product of the blockchain company R3, is a specialized platform for regulated industries such as banking, capital markets and international trade, the website explains. It is extra secure and enables free movement of assets between different parties, while keeping parties informed of actions related to the asset and maintaining regulatory compliance, the website says. Corda is used for applications related to digital assets and currencies, payments, global commerce, fraud detection and smooth, streamlined reconciliation, the website said.

Ripple

Ripple bills itself as the one-stop shopping platform for businesses, sporting solutions that are faster, more transparent and more cost-effective than traditional financial services, the site proclaims. Bank of America, Brazil’s Banco Redimento and Singapore-based global payments company Nium are among its clients, according to Ripple.

Solana

Solana offers the ability to create “scalable, easy-to-use apps” with its platform, and also says it’s the fastest blockchain in the world, with 400 millisecond block times. It is also super secure, affordable ($0.01 per transaction) and resistant to censorship because the network is spread over thousands of independent nodes, the site indicates. Tutorials on the site offers guidance on how to build a decentralized app, run a validator node, and other blockchain features.

Stellar

Stellar has a “universe of opportunity” for developers interested in creating financial access. The open network offers speed, affordability and utility, the Stellar website says. The network of rails extends to over 185 countries. Users can use Stellar to connect to both fiat and crypto institutions with a single integration, and fintech organizations can use Stellar to “enhance, not replace” the global financial system, the website said.

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Tezos

“A blockchain designed to evolve,” says the website of Tezos, which also has a coin (XTZ, aka Tez). The platform promises scalability, thanks to a modular architecture; energy efficiency, due to its proof-of-stake consensus mechanism; “institutional grade” security; active community management; and super smart smart contracts.

Tron DAO

Tron DAOwhich have their own cryptocurrencies (TRX and stablecoin USDD), says it is the world’s fastest growing public chain, with 100 million plus accounts and about $4 billion in transactions. The blockchain platform has a “highly efficient” smart contract and high throughput thanks to the improvement of TPS (transactions per second). Tron’s Sun Network is said to help decentralized apps run quickly, securely and with less energy consumption. Tron decentralized in 2021 to become Tron DAO, which stands for Decentralized Autonomous Organization. Tron’s founder, Chinese crypto-tycoon Justin Sun, is known for being controversial, according to this function in The Verge.

XDC network

Supported by the XDC Foundation, XDC Network describes itself as a hybrid blockchain that can drive use cases and remain flexible to meet the demands of a changing industry. In 2022, via a partnership with blockchain games Metaverses and fintech firm Globiance, the network opened a branch in Metaverse’s Crypto Valley.