I’m a firm believer that information is the key to financial freedom. On the Stilt Blog, I write about the complex topics — like finance, immigration, and technology — to help immigrants make the most of their lives in the U.S. Our content and brand have been featured in Forbes, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and more.
See all posts Frank GogolETN Cryptocurrency: What You Need to Know
Updated on April 9, 2024
Written by
Written by
Reviewed by
Rohit Mittal
Reviewed by
Rohit Mittal
Rohit Mittal is the co-founder and CEO of Stilt. Rohit has extensive experience in credit risk analytics and data science. He spent years building credit risk and fraud models for top U.S. banks. In his current role, he defines the overall business strategy, leads debt and capital fundraising efforts, leads product development, and leads other customer-related aspects for the company. Stilt is backed by Y Combinator and has raised a total of $275M in debt and equity funding to date.
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At a Glance: Electroneum (ETN) is a mobile-first cryptocurrency designed for fast and cheap cross-border money transfers. It operates on a blockchain controlled by Electroneum Pty Ltd, allowing them to moderate validators and prevent attacks. The project’s innovative aspect is the AnyTask platform, connecting freelancers and employers who pay and get paid with ETN. Electroneum uses a unique proof-of-responsibility consensus mechanism, where node operators prove charitable use of mining rewards. ETN can be bought on exchanges or directly through the ETN App, and selling is done through exchanges or by exchanging ETN for other currencies on the app.
There are thousands of cryptocurrencies in existence. Hundreds of new ones are created every single day. In this river of crypto, it can be difficult to sort the good from the bad. One of these is ETN cryptocurrency, also known as Electroneum.
What is Electroneum (ETN)?
ETN currency is the native coin of the Electroneum blockchain. The Electroneum blockchain was created by a group of developers in the United Kingdom who formed Electroneum Pty Ltd. Electroneum is unlike many other public blockchains in that Electroneum Pty Ltd has a significant amount of centralized control over the development of the blockchain, and intends to maintain it in the future. This control is mainly in the form of moderation of validators, to prevent any malicious validators from successfully attacking the network.
Validators (or nodes) are the specialized computers that handle all of the mathematical computation to operate a blockchain.
The goal of Electroneum is to allow fast and cheap transfers of money across international borders, like many other cryptocurrencies in existence. Electroneum is mobile-first, meaning it is designed to work well with smartphones.
The main innovative aspect of the Electroneum project is its anytask.com freelancer platform. AnyTask is a variation on existing freelance work platforms like freelancer.com and fiverr.com. AnyTask links people who need digital tasks done (such as writing and creating digital branding) with professionals with the skills to do them. AnyTask allows people to pay and get paid with ENT currency.
Electroneum Consensus Mechanism
The Electroneum blockchain uses a consensus mechanism which the developers call proof-of-responsibility. A consensus mechanism is a way for all the computers that support a blockchain (called nodes) to agree on a single state for all accounts on the blockchain.
The goal of a consensus mechanism is to make it either very expensive or very difficult (ideally both) for any node to trick all the other nodes by adding fraudulent transactions to the blockchain. With a good consensus mechanism, nodes do not need any kind of policing or central control to prevent fraud.
The most popular consensus mechanisms are proof-of-work and proof-of-stake. Proof-of-work requires nodes to race each other to be the first to submit valid transactions to the chain and get rewarded for it. A node (or group of nodes) wanting to trick all the other nodes into accepting a fraudulent transaction would need to have more computing power than half of the rest of the network. On a small network, this can be achieved with a powerful enough computer. On a large network, such as the Bitcoin blockchain, it is practically impossible.
Consensus is what makes blockchains secure.
The number of nodes on the Electroneum network is well below 100, meaning a 51% attack (tricking other nodes into accepting fraudulent transactions) would be within the realm of possibility. Electroneum Pty Ltd prevents this from happening by limiting who can operate a node and how nodes can behave once they have permission to join the network.
How does Proof-of-Responsibility Work?
Electroneum uses a so-called proof-of-responsibility mechanism. It is based on node operators proving that they use block rewards for charitable giving. As long as operators provide this proof they can continue to operate the Electroneum blockchain. According to the Electroneum company, it is intended to reduce inequality.
In reality, proof-of-responsibility is not a consensus mechanism in the strictest sense. This is because Electroneum Pty Ltd directly controls what nodes can join the network and how they can behave. This kind of direct monitoring (called moderation) runs counter to the idea of decentralized security that other consensus mechanisms promote.
On other blockchains, no such centrally-granted permissions or control are necessary. Anyone on Earth with an internet connection can set up a node on, for example, Ethereum or Bitcoin. They do not need anybody else’s permission. Consensus mechanisms prevent the nodes from ever being able to fraudulently change Ethereum or Bitcoin transactions.
Why was ETN Crypto Invented?
ETN cryptocurrency was invented as a way for people to transfer funds quickly and cheaply across the world without a bank account. It also aims, through the AnyTask platform, to make it easy for digital professionals to earn money for their work anywhere in the world.
How Does Electroneum Work?
Electroneum is a mobile-first crypto project. This means that ETN currency is designed to be easy to use when using a smartphone. This choice was made to make using ETN currency convenient.
Electroneum is a blockchain that uses a consensus mechanism called proof-of-responsibility. Proof-of-responsibility means that node operators must provide proof that they use the rewards from mining for charitable causes. The Electroneum blockchain is kept secure by the fact that only a few node operators are allowed to join, and the behavior of these nodes is monitored by Electroneum Pty Ltd.
The main way to interact with ETN currency is through the ETN App. The ETN App is a crypto wallet that can connect to the Electroneum blockchain. You can view your ETN balance, make payments, and buy ETN currency using the app. You can also interact with the AnyTask freelance job platform using the ETN smartphone app. The app is available for Android and iOS.
How to Buy ETN Crypto?
Electroneum is available to buy on centralized exchanges like Kucoin, Changelly, and Huobi. You can also buy ETN currency directly in the ETN App.
To purchase ETN cryptocurrency on a centralized exchange, simply create an account with the exchange, then complete the KYC (know your customer) requirements.
To combat criminal activities like money laundering, many countries have AML (anti-money laundering) and KYC (know your customer) regulations. These regulations require financial institutions to record the identity and personal or business details of all the customers they do business with. This process allows government officials to trace the identity of account holders if a crime is committed.
Centralized exchanges based in the United States and many other countries require you to provide some form of official identification before you are allowed to use the platform.
Once you have met these requirements you can use your credit or debit card to fund the account with crypto at the offered exchange rate. You can also buy it using some other currency.
If you have the ETN wallet, you can transfer the crypto from the exchange to it. If you intend to hold crypto for a long time, it is generally considered safest to keep it in your wallet. You can also leave it on the exchange.
How to Sell ETN Crypto?
You can always sell ETN currency on the same exchange you bought it from if you bought it from an exchange. If you bought it using the ETN wallet app, you can create an account on a centralized cryptocurrency exchange, fund the account with ETN then choose which currency you want to buy with it.
Read More
- How to Make Money with Cryptocurrency
- How to Withdraw from Binance
- How to Transfer From Coinbase to Coinbase Pro
- How to Transfer from Coinbase to Binance
- How Does Cryptocurrency Gain Value?
- How to Read Crypto Charts
Final Thoughts
ETN currency is the native coin of the Electroneum blockchain. The Electroneum blockchain was created in 2017 and is controlled by a UK-based company called Electroneum Pty Ltd. The company controls who can operate a node on the network, and actively monitor the blockchain to remove suspicious transactions. Electroneum can be used for payments on the company’s AnyTask freelance work platform. ETN currency can be bought and sold at many centralized exchanges.
Frank Gogol
I’m a firm believer that information is the key to financial freedom. On the Stilt Blog, I write about the complex topics — like finance, immigration, and technology — to help immigrants make the most of their lives in the U.S. Our content and brand have been featured in Forbes, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and more.