In the optimistic days of late 2017, the EOS project broke records during their ICO. They secured an incredible amount of funding and it has allowed them to forge on through the prolonged bear market in which they currently exist. Envisioned as a successor to the Ethereum blockchain – and the smart contract, decentralized application ecosystem that cropped up around it – EOS has made some questionable decisions during development. Mostly, these decisions pertain to the exact degree of decentralization present.
Despite this, they held tight to the their spot in the top five cryptocurrencies by market cap – until Stellar Lumens (XLM) finally dethroned them earlier this month. Although their total market cap may be suppressed, their transactional volume is nearly at an all-time high. In fact, EOS and TRX make up over 80% of total transactions for all cryptocurrencies. This level of transactions is pushed by high dApp usage and a large number of active users.
A Façade of Decentralization
One of the largest issues with the EOS blockchain comes from their questionable decentralization. While most cryptocurrencies stick close to Bitcoin’s much-touted trustless system, the cryptocurrency followed a different path. While the blockchain shares many features with other systems, their development heads made it clear – they are not focused on decentralization, but rather anti-censorship and resistance to shut downs.
There is nothing inherently wrong with centralized systems, but the idea is taboo in blockchain circles. As a community that sprouted from Bitcoin and a desire to avoid government intrusion, centralization runs anathema to their ideals. However, there are advantages to be had – EOS can reverse fraudulent transactions and freeze malicious accounts without a hard fork. This ability is a double-edged sword, as it could cause catastrophic damage to the blockchain if it fell into the wrong hands.
dApp Production on EOS
The mainnet launch for EOS was famously problematic. Glitches, freezes and flaws abounded and the dApp ecosystem remained quiet for the following several months. However, now that these issues are mostly dealt with, EOS is seeing a dApp renaissance. As one of the first ecosystems designed around dApp development, producers are finding it the perfect place to release new applications.
For now, the majority of these applications are focused on gambling. This shouldn’t be considered surprising, as games of chance are generally simple and properly leverage the financial aspect of the blockchain. As EOS and the blockchain industry both mature, we will see increasingly complex dApps become available. John Oliver once said of the cryptocurrency, “Maybe EOS is going to be the next Google. I don’t think it is, and I certainly don’t think it can be worth over a billion dollars at this point, but I could be wrong.” While he may yet be correct, increasing production on the EOS blockchain may yet prove him wrong.
Article By: Adam Stone
