The long cryptocurrency bear market undoubtedly changed the face of the industry. Projects have shifted goals, scaled back or even shut down entirely. However, it seems that some may just be hibernating – waiting for more advantageous conditions before kick-starting their public relations engine. The New Economy Movement, or NEM (XEM), seems to be the latter. Where they once held a spot in the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap, they’ve now fallen to number 16. Where other large projects ensured that their name remained in recent memory, NEM slowly fell from the public mind.
Despite no high-profile news, NEM continued development. Projects that had started during the crypto-boom didn’t go away – they just fell under the radar. To make matters worse, the CoinCheck hack soured NEM’s public image, through no fault of their own. Nearly 6% of the total NEM coins were stolen in the incident. As of November, CoinCheck is once again allowing NEM’s XEM token to be traded on their exchange – a fact that briefly spiked the coin’s price.
What is NEM?
NEM is envisioned as more of a platform than a currency itself. The project amalgamated out of the Bitcointalk forums – where an ad hoc network of developers intended to hard-fork the NXT cryptocurrency. Ultimately, they decided against this and formed their own blockchain instead – the New Economy Movement. Using the crypto-symbol XEM, they marketed NEM as a new platform for decentralized developers.
Their chief difference lay in the Proof of Importance algorithm. Derived from Proof of Stake, Proof of Importance is an active algorithm that requires participation. Where PoS focuses entirely on hoarding the native cryptocurrency to prove financial commitment, PoI focuses on engagement in the economy. Users are rewarded for holding the currency – but also for the amount of transactions they are involved in. This prevents stagnation while still encouraging users to remain within the NEM ecosystem.
NEM’S Quiet Progress
NEM’s long-standing partnership with the Zaif exchange brought about Mijin. This blockchain building platform is already in use with several Japanese banking concerns. These internal systems ensure information confidentiality, while still bringing the benefits of blockchain technology.
More recently, NEM branched into Europe to work with Deutsche Bahn AG. The company provides railway services to much of Europe and is prototyping a blockchain system to back their ticketing services. Meanwhile, the Ukraine is performing e-voting tests using NEM technology. Over all, NEM is in good shape – although they feel no need to announce it.
Article By: Adam Stone
