Lisk plans to launch a modular cryptocurrency which it says would satisfy the growing interest to use the blockchain as a decentralized database for different use-cases outside of FinTech May 24.
According to its co-founder and CEO, Max Kordek, the platform will allow JavaScript developers to follow it by offering them necessary tools to deploy a blockchain application in its own sidechain on the Lisk network. They won’t have to learn complex languages of individual blockchains.
Modular cryptocurrency
If successful with its launch, it would be the first of its kind. As a modular cryptocurrency, it means that “due to our decentralized application platform, you can implement new features very quickly and easily with decentralized applications,” explains Kordek, via a chat with Cointelegraph. “Like a decentralized storage module, decentralized voting, usernames, identities, trust system, messaging, social networks, sharing economies.”
It will also serve as a solution to scalability which is a problem in the Bitcoin community. Due to the fact that the blockchain is limited in how much data it can hold, proposals for increasing the block size have been the topic of heated debate.
Why sidechains are important
Lisk’s cryptocurrency is to use sidechains to infinitely extend the scalability of a digital asset ecosystem without impacting the speed or performance of the core blockchain.
Sidechains are an independent cryptographic ledger which attach to the main blockchain, but does not impact the speed or security of the main chain. According to Daniel Vassilev of getLISK.com, sidechains are important because they reduce the 'bloat' on the main chain “allowing the main chain to continue being fast and efficient and only those who are interested in the Dapp are responsible for maintaining it and not everyone. Thus keeping the entire platform lean.”
Mainchain to stay lean
Kordek says they “allow us to be extremely scalable. We can support thousands and thousands of decentralized applications because every decentralized application runs in its own sidechain. With the sidechains, our mainchain stays extremely lean and efficient because it doesn't get polluted with all the dapp data.”
Kordek adds:
“Additionally, with the current Ethereum craze we also see that blockchain-based applications are the next big thing. Lisk is the only platform which supports the most widespread programming language - JavaScript. So we can directly go into existing programming communities and show Lisk.”
Stephen DeMeulenaere, the co-founder of Coin Academy in an email to Cointelegraph writes:
“The Bitcoin community will benefit from Lisk's platform by seeing a practical example of how sidechains work in action and what the benefits may be for Bitcoin's blockchain, and how easily it can be built in Javascript.
I do believe the release of Lisk's platform is in line with a trend in the industry, which is to have interoperable blockchains. While Lisk's sidechains only work on their platform at present, they are building the future where blockchains will be able to communicate with each other.”
Funding
Lisk’s four-week crowdsale ended on March 21, 2016 raising more than 14,000 Bitcoins and 80 million crypti (80 percent of the existing market) to amount to $5.75 million. An increase in Bitcoin valuation currently makes it worth $6.5 million.