Proof of Work vs Proof of Stake

Proof of Work vs Proof of Stake

As you may know, the excitement surrounding Bitcoin, Blockchain, and the whole cryptocurrency ecosystem has been growing throughout the world.

The primary justification for this is because it provides a digital substitute for the antiquated fiat monetary system based on banks, paper money, and "middlemen" In other words, people adore it because it is a DECENTRALIZED peer-topeer system that completely eliminates the intermediary (and expenses!)

The Bitcoin Blockchain was initially introduced using a "consensus mechanism" since it seemed hazardous to carry out transactions between individuals based just on trust.

In essence, this implies that a crypto network's computers must all concur on which transactions are valid. It then allows everyone in the network to see every transaction. In turn, this aids in the prevention of fraud, scams, and hacking.

There are presently two working consensus processes.

The first one was introduced with Bitcoin and the first blockchain network around ten years ago and is called "Proof of Work" (PoW).

The most recent is "Proof of Stake" (PoS), which was adopted by Ethereum (soon to be Ethereum 2.0), the second-largest cryptocurrencies, and others.

Proof of Work (PoW) First-generation blockchain and cryptocurrencies only existed due of "mining," hence the name "Proof of Work."

Proof of work vs Proof of stake

In essence, this is using enormous computers to process data and algorithms in order to answer a challenging arithmetic problem. One bitcoin, cryptocurrency, or blockchain block can take months to construct thanks to a labor-intensive procedure that consumes a lot of electricity and energy.

A blockchain transaction has to be added to the blockchain in order to be acknowledged.

The peer-to-peer transparency and crucial security that give bitcoin and blockchain their strength and power are maintained through this mechanism, which also keeps them decentralised.

The reason why it is impossible for a person or organisation to get engaged in mining and potentially throw a wrench in the works is because mining demands so much computing power.

However, because it primarily handles incoming and outgoing transactions, this energy-intensive feature also prohibits cryptocurrency blockchains like Bitcoin from scaling or developing as an entity.

Due to this, Ethereum and other platforms have begun utilising PoS.

Proof of Stake (PoS) Early on, Ethereum's creators realised that PoW would have limitations in terms of scalability.

As it turned out, Ethereum's goals to start supplying stablecoin, smart contracts, and NFTs together with decentralised financial chances (DeFi) were forged.

The "old" mining methods just couldn't keep up with this increase, thus Ethereum has been constructing its ETH2 blockchain using PoS since December 2020. It is anticipated that it will be operational by the end of 2022.

PoS blockchains function similarly to PoW in that "validators" "stake" their own cryptocurrency in exchange for the opportunity to validate new transactions. As a result, the blockchain is updated, and the "validator" gets rewarded.

These are in proportion to how much of the connected cryptocurrency they hold.

You also need to have a fair bit of technical expertise and a sizable amount of the relevant cryptocurrency.

However, if you don't have enough Ethereum, for example, you may also join a "staking pool" with other people.

The pooling technique used by Coinbase is often referred to as "delegating."

Atmos, Tezos, and Cardano all employ PoS. PoS's ultimate goal is to increase speed while lowering costs.

Learn more about: Proof of work blockchain