Zilliqa is a blockchain network created to address the scalability issues that affect other cryptocurrencies and smart contract platforms. ZIL, its native asset, is used to incentivize users to support the network.
Zilliqa was one of the first projects to explore the potential of sharding, where a network is broken up into smaller pieces to process a greater number of transactions in parallel. Sharding has since been embraced by other blockchain projects, including Ethereum, which has made the technology a central part of its scaling roadmap.
Zilliqa allows for the creation of smart contracts using a "peer-reviewed and safe-by-design" programming language called Scilla. The project has also sought to reduce the environmental impact of mining through its consensus mechanism — known as practical Byzantine fault tolerance.
A governance token called gZIL has been established to enable long-term holder participation in the Zilliqa ecosystem. ZIL can also be staked on OKX Earn by searching for the token in the dropdown menu provided.
Scalability has been a recurring issue in the blockchain sector, with concerns that the technology would struggle to process transactions promptly if mass adoption was achieved. In the original Zilliqa white paper, the team stated that many platforms are limited to processing fewer than 10 to 15 transactions per second, but Zilliqa can process more than 2,800.
Those behind Zilliqa highlight that a lack of scalability also directly impacts how affordable a blockchain is to use. The project's documentation states that Zilliqa offers faster confirmation times and lower transaction fees than Bitcoin and Ethereum, meaning that it is well suited to micropayments.