The governance of new technology projects in remote and developing economies is frequently undermined by severe information asymmetry and fragmented telecommunications infrastructure. While theoretical public policy advocates for the deployment of distributed ledger technologies to enhance institutional design and regulatory transparency, evaluating the economic impact of these systems relies heavily on static, retrospective datasets. This paper proposes a cloud-native architectural framework utilizing Amazon Web Services to construct a real-time, serverless pipeline for telecommunications governance and blockchain integration. By deploying asynchronous Python middleware integrated with simulated smart contracts, the proposed system programmatically ingests high-frequency network telemetry and cross-border telecommunications data. The system translates these inputs into a dynamic Institutional Transparency Index, instantly identifying regulatory bottlenecks and pricing friction across public-private partnerships. Preliminary architectural evaluations demonstrate that decoupling the governance tracking from legacy, centralized state databases significantly reduces information asymmetry, providing policy researchers with a deterministic, highly scalable tool for modeling the economics of distributed ledgers in developing contexts.
Regulatory permissiveness is widely prescribed as the primary institutional lever for digital asset adoption. This study challenges that prescription. Analyzing NFT and DeFi adoption across 105 countries using Principal Component Analysis (PCA)-constructed composite indices and multivariate Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression, we find that the Frontier Technology Readiness Index (FTRI) is the dominant structural correlate across all specifications, consistently outperforming competing explanatory variables. Regulatory environments neither independently explain adoption nor are associated with it linearly: both permissive and restrictive environments outperform mostly prohibited jurisdictions, suggesting that regulatory clarity rather than permissiveness is the operative institutional dimension. NFT and DeFi markets follow empirically distinct pathways: NFT adoption shows stronger associations with digital marketplace maturity while DeFi is more closely associated with technological infrastructure, suggesting that treating Web3 as a homogeneous policy category is unwarranted. National income conditions how effectively technological readiness is associated with adoption gains, with structural determinants exhibiting considerably reduced explanatory power in lower-middle-income economies. For policymakers, these findings reframe the debate: the primary structural correlate of digital asset adoption is technological capacity, not regulatory stance, and below a development threshold, neither intervention is reliably associated with adoption gains.
Introduction This study examines how decentralized social media platforms are reshaping participatory communication and platform governance in contemporary digital environments. Drawing on a socio-technical perspective, the analysis explores how blockchain infrastructures, token-based economies, and community-driven rule-making reconfigure established models of media control, participation, and authority. Methods Using a qualitative mixed-method approach that combines a structured review of prior research with expert interviews from the Web3 ecosystem, the study develops an integrative analytical framework that captures the evolving relationships between infrastructure, participation, and governance in decentralized platforms. Results By conceptualizing decentralization as a transformation in communicative power rather than a purely technical shift, the paper shows how user agency, trust, and visibility are negotiated through programmable infrastructures and collective governance mechanisms. While decentralized systems promise greater autonomy and transparency, the findings also highlight persistent tensions related to usability, equity, and regulatory ambiguity. Discussion By situating these tensions within broader debates on platform governance and digital communication, the study contributes to communication scholarship on emerging media systems and offers insights into the societal implications of decentralized digital infrastructures.
Platform monopolies have turned the contemporary internet into digital feudalism, extracting profit from human connection while enabling surveillance and censorship. Iran’s 2019 near-blackout, which cut connectivity to 5 %, exposed how centralized architectures become authoritarian chokepoints. Yet scholarship remains fragmented: most studies isolate protocols instead of synthesizing how technical design and political economy co-evolve. We compare federated systems such as ReP2P Matrix, Nostr’s peer-to-peer networks, Bluesky’s AT Protocol, blockchain communication hybrids, and Named Data Networking. Our multi-method study of decentralized internet alternatives blends traffic analytics of 4 million Nostr users on 600 relays, performance benchmarks, economic sustainability modeling, and architectural case studies. We ask whether these designs can fulfil the promise of a truly decentralized internet. The evidence is mixed. SendingNetwork scales group messaging linearly, and Waku proves spam-resistant peer-to-peer networks with <300 ms proof generation; however, no single protocol reconciles censorship resistance, usability, and economic sustainability. Nostr delivers uncompromising censorship resistance yet consumes 35 × the resources of centralized systems. Bluesky’s growth leaves 98.9 % of identities non-portable. Community mesh networks invite new hierarchies of technical privilege. Accepting irreducible trade-offs must guide emerging web3 governance. Communities will choose architectures aligned with their values, but meaningful decentralization will remain aspirational until funding models and accessibility gaps are resolved.
Patrick Spiesberger, Nils Henrik Beyer, Hannes Hartenstein
Ethereum's ideal of censorship resistance, together with related fairness properties, is undermined in practice, motivating fairness mechanisms that aim to restore these properties. Several of these mechanisms hand control over block contents to a committee of proposers under a 1-of-n honest assumption: at least one committee member complies with the mechanism even when deviating would increase personal revenue. We refer to such proposers as altruistic. Yet prior work shows that roughly 91 percent of blocks are constructed by centralized block-building services that demonstrably take user-adverse actions for financial gain; the responsible proposers sign these blocks blindly, without any means of intervention. A common reading of this figure is that 9 percent of proposers forgo these gains and act altruistically. Our empirical analysis of the full year 2025 shows that this share is far smaller: at most 1.55 percent of proposers can plausibly be regarded as altruistic, whereas the remaining 98.45 percent of proposers exhibit observable non-altruistic behavior. We interpret 1.55 percent as an upper bound on the prevalence of altruistic proposers. These results imply that committee-based fairness mechanisms that rely on altruistic members would require substantially larger committees than currently proposed. This raises concerns about their practical viability and motivates mechanisms in which fair behavior is the rational choice.
This paper studies whether fast-settlement payment layers can replace secure baselayer blockchains in a search-theoretic monetary model. The Chain provides secure but costly and probabilistic settlement, while the Network provides instant, cost-free payments but exposes users to cyberattacks and requires sellers to incur adoption costs. In the Chain-only benchmark, buyers choose settlement intensity after bargaining. Because they do not internalize the full trade surplus, settlement intensity is inefficiently low, reducing trade efficiency and weakening the monetary value of tokens. Introducing the Network generates multiple payment equilibria. Under exogenous cyberattack risk, Chain and Network payments may coexist: the Network provides fast settlement and fallback liquidity when Chain settlement fails, while the Chain remains valuable for its security and universal acceptance. If cyberattack risk is sufficiently low, pure Network payments can arise, although pure Chain payments may also persist because Network acceptance is costly for sellers. When cyberattack risk is endogenous, broader Network adoption increases exposed balances and strengthens hackers’ incentives. This security externality weakens the Network’s value as fallback liquidity and eliminates the pure Network-payment equilibrium. The Chain, therefore, survives as a secure settlement anchor. The welfare analysis shows that Network adoption is not always welfare improving: its payment-efficiency gains must outweigh seller adoption costs and, under endogenous attacks, the resource costs of hacking. Fast-settlement layers can improve payment efficiency, but they do not generically replace secure base-layer settlement.
Abstract This article critically examines how Web3 decentralization policy trends impact global digital governance, questioning whether they genuinely distribute power or merely shift influence to a new, tech-savvy elite. Based on fieldwork in Silicon Valley since August 2022 and engagement with scholars and practitioners up to December 2025, the article provides a conceptual analysis with emerging empirical insights around the nascent global Web3 movement. While Web3 advocates challenge centralized data monopolies and traditional state structures, this analysis critiques the assumption that Web3 democratizes power, highlighting both its potential for inclusion and risks of exclusion, insofar as it may reinforce hierarchies rooted in technical expertise and digital access. While acknowledging the broader landscape of Web3 governance (including hybrid and federated models) and scoping the Global North and Global South contexts considering global adoption cases, the article particularly focuses on three post-Westphalian paradigms: (i) Network States, (ii) Network Sovereignties, and (iii) Algorithmic Nations. While Network States advocate for crypto-libertarian governance, Network Sovereignties and Algorithmic Nations emphasize cooperative governance aimed at empowering minority communities, such as indigenous groups, stateless nations, and e-diasporas, through decentralized, data-driven systems. By engaging with both the limitations and some promises, prospects, and pitfalls of Web3, this article questions whether Web3 can create a more inclusive global order or if influence is increasingly concentrated among a new elite. This article contributes to debates on sovereignty, governance, and citizenship by advocating hybrid policy frameworks that balance global and local dynamics, emphasizing solidarity, digital justice, and international cooperation for equitable Web3 governance.
Dec 23, 2025·Proceedings of the ... Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences/Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
Tejas Kotha, Kushagra Bhatnagar, Leona Chandra Kruse, Matti Rossi
NFTs (non-fungible tokens) promised the interaction of artists/creators directly with their collectors without the need for any intermediaries, but the realisation was quick that such a technology, instead of getting rid of intermediaries, reintroduced new intermediaries in the form of NFT marketplaces. These marketplaces exhibit diverse features and cater to different user groups. A wide array of governance strategies, such as curation and gatekeeping, are used to steer creativity and interactions in the marketplace, informed by the marketplace's strategy. We examined this diversity by identifying the 'ideal types' of marketplaces based on these strategies alongside the motivations of the creators to make sense of the growing NFT market and constructed a typology that distinguishes four kinds of NFT marketplaces: Avant-garde, Canonical, Mass Culture, and Coterie. The article also offers practical implications for creators and collectors looking to make informed choices when deciding to participate in a particular marketplace.
Dec 5, 2025·PROCEEDINGS. III Congreso Internacional Multidisciplinario “Innovación, Equidad y Sostenibilidad en la Era Digital: Nuevas Fronteras para América Latina”
Remigio Santiago Siguencia Montero, Miriam Carmita Mora Urdiales
With the significant advancement of technology and networks at the global level, it can currently be observed that there is a wide digital access gap between urban and rural areas, a situation that creates a major obstacle to guaranteeing the right to education, especially for children and adolescents who live in areas where there are no internet connectivity towers and who, in addition, face extreme poverty that prevents them from acquiring an electronic device for their academic activities. Various statistical data on connectivity in rural areas identify the main factors that perpetuate inequality in access: infrastructure, affordability, and digital skills, situations that affect educational equity. According to evidence from studies carried out by international and regional organizations, several aspects that generate this problem are discussed, such as regulatory implications and, mainly, the poor implementation of public policies by the Central Government and the Autonomous Decentralized Governments. Based on this, recommendations are proposed for state institutions and multilateral actors aimed at ensuring meaningful connectivity and, in this way, guaranteeing the right to education in rural areas.
The escalating cost of higher education has rendered access to quality education a significant challenge for students worldwide.Traditional student loan systems often involve intermediaries, leading to delays, increased costs, and limited accessibility.Block chain technology, with its decentralized and transparent nature, presents a transformative solution to these challenges.This paper explores the potential of decentralized student loan systems powered by block chain technology, aiming to enhance accessibility, reduce costs, and increase transparency in educational financing.
This paper introduces Web 3.0 NEXT , a network design that pushes Web3 decentralization even further by reducing the dependency on centralized or traditional internet service providers (ISPs) and data centres. By integrating peer-to-peer mesh networking, decentralized storages, blockchain-based authentication and verification system, and a suite of emerging off-grid connectivity technologies like Wi-Fi mesh, LoRaWan, and satellite networks, the suggested system seeks to establish a strong, self-sustaining network infrastructure. This paper explores the benefits and technical challenges of such a system. That area can be used in a disaster-prone area, national security and economic innovations, which may force centralized authority from suppressing it. We will also discuss ethical, legal, financial, energy, user adoption, and security considerations, alongside relevant case studies and provide a holistic view of the potential challenges faced in deploying WEB 3.0 NEXT.
Urban-rural dichotomy is a poaching challenge to inclusive economic growth and sustainable development across the world. Such imbalance is commonly defined by unequal access to infrastructure, economic opportunities and good public services. This paper discusses how digital technologies, such as broadband, mobile applications, e-commerce, and precision farming tools, are transformative solutions that can be important tools in bridging this gap, economic opportunities, and sustainable livelihoods in rural society. The main hypothesis is that the traditional "urban bias" can be reversed by using specific digital interventions to reduce the transaction costs, widen the market reach, and decentralize the access to knowledge and finance.
Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap assumes that adoption of layer-2 (L2) rollups will relieve congestion on the layer-1 (L1) mainnet, but there is little causal evidence on how large that relief is across major protocol changes. We construct a daily panel for Ethereum from August 2021 to December 2024 and estimate the total effect of L2 adoption on L1 congestion using a regime-aware interrupted time-series design that spans the London, Merge, and Dencun upgrades and adjusts for macro demand. In the pre-Dencun regime, a 10 percentage point increase in L2 adoption reduces median L1 base fees by about 11%—roughly 4–5 Gwei per 21k-gas transfer—and yields similar declines in a harmonized congestion index, with only modest changes in block utilization. Combining these elasticities with a Merge-era counterfactual path for L2 adoption, we estimate that observed adoption avoided about $80–$90 million in base and priority fees over 137 days, or roughly $0.6–$0.7 million per day. These effects are precise while L2 adoption is still ramping up but become statistically local once adoption exceeds 85% after Dencun, implying that congestion relief is economically meaningful yet regime-specific. Our findings support continued investment in L2 infrastructure alongside L1 mechanism design and illustrate how to benchmark congestion relief in other multi-layer digital platforms.
The digital innovation accompanied by explicit economic incentives have fundamentally changed the process of innovation diffusion. As a representative of digital innovation, NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) potentially offer new revenue streams in the digital space. However, current researches mainly focus on transaction networks and community culture, leaving the interplay among diffusion dynamics, economic dynamics, and social constraints on Twitter. By collecting and analyzing NFTs-related tweet dataset, the motivations of retweeters, the information mechanisms behind emojis, and the networked-based diffusion dynamics is systematically investigated. Results indicate that Retweeting is fueled by Freemint and trading information, with the higher economic incentives as a major motivation and some potential organizational tendencies. The diffusion of NFTs is primarily driven by a “Ringed-layered” information mechanism involving individual promoters and speculators. The presentation of content contribute positively to the growth of the retweet network. This study contributes to the innovation diffusion theory with economic incentives embedded.
The integration of technology into daily human lives has become indispensable, shaping society and emphasizing the role of humans in the development of society. This indispensable integration is illustrated by the global rise of Web3, a decentralized application ecosystem that utilizes advanced technologies, such as crypto assets, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), decentralized finance (DeFi), decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and the Metaverse. These technologies offer significant benefits alongside unique risks and challenges, necessitating innovative regulatory strategies to address them. The inherent tension between promoting innovation and safeguarding citizens’ interests requires a flexible and comprehensive regulatory framework for Web3 in Kenya, capable of adapting to the rapidly evolving technological landscape while simultaneously managing emerging risks. This research aims to identify key principles for developing effective Web3 regulations and argues for Kenya’s regulatory recognition of Web3 technologies, emphasizing potential benefits such as increased innovation, digital sovereignty, financial independence, and economic development. It also explores different regulatory strategies, such as self-regulation, co-regulation, and the implementation of co-regulatory tools like public-private dialogue (PPD). The findings propose that Kenyan regulators should adopt flexible, forward-thinking regulatory strategies that can navigate the complexities introduced by these transformative technologies.
Blockchain can be used to improve microfinance management in several ways. This can help reduce the costs of microfinance by eliminating the need for intermediaries such as banks and credit bureaus and increase transparency in the microfinance sector by making all transactions visible to everyone. stakeholders. This can help reduce fraud and build trust. Blockchain technology can also be used to improve access to finance for people living in poverty by making it easier for them to obtain loans and other financial services and to increase financial inclusion by providing people living in poverty a safe and reliable way to obtain funds, store and manage their money. Indeed, the blockchain is a secure, transparent and immutable distributed ledger. This means that data stored on a blockchain cannot be modified or deleted and is accessible to all network participants. Blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize a wide range of industries, including finance, supply chain management, healthcare and voting. This makes blockchain a valuable tool for microfinance institutions, as it can help improve the efficiency and accuracy of their data management processes. For example, blockchain can be used to track loan repayments, manage customer information, and prevent fraud. This study aims to demonstrate that blockchain has the potential to revolutionize the microfinance sector by improving the transparency and accountability of microfinance institutions, given that all transactions on a blockchain are public and cannot be modified. This means borrowers and lenders can be confident that their transactions are recorded accurately and that there is no risk of fraud. Overall, blockchain technology has the potential to significantly improve information management in microfinance institutions. This can lead to increased efficiency, accuracy, transparency and accountability in microcredit management. Keywords: Microcredit, blockchain, security, transparency, decentralization, credit.
Total value locked (TVL) is widely used to measure the size and popularity of decentralized finance (DeFi). However, TVL can be easily manipulated and inflated through "double counting" activities such as wrapping and leveraging. As existing methodologies addressing double counting are inconsistent and flawed, we propose a new framework, termed "total value redeemable (TVR)", to assess the true underlying value of DeFi. Our formal analysis reveals how DeFi's complex network spreads financial contagion via derivative tokens, increasing TVL's sensitivity to external shocks. To quantify double counting, we construct the DeFi multiplier, which mirrors the money multiplier in traditional finance (TradFi). This measurement reveals substantial double counting in DeFi, finding that the gap between TVL and TVR reached \$139.87 billion during the peak of DeFi activity on December 2, 2021, with a TVL-to-TVR ratio of approximately 2. We conduct sensitivity tests to evaluate the stability of TVL compared to TVR, demonstrating the former's significantly higher level of instability than the latter, especially during market downturns: A 25% decline in the price of Ether (ETH) leads to a \$1 billion greater non-linear decrease in TVL compared to TVR via the liquidations triggered by derivative tokens. We also document that the DeFi money multiplier is positively correlated with crypto market indicators and negatively correlated with macroeconomic indicators. Overall, our findings suggest that TVR is more reliable and stable than TVL.
The rapid advancement of digitization and decentralization is heralding a new era in social and economic organization. As nation-states grapple with the impact of (post-)globalization and technological innovation, increasing attention is being paid to blockchain technology's potential to enable the emergence of new governance structures, such as decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and network states. This chapter analyzes whether DAOs could provide a viable framework for addressing the needs of future societies while maintaining fundamental principles such as democratic processes and the rule of law.
The advent of decentralized finance (DeFi) has instigated a paradigm shift in finance and economics, challenging the established norms of traditional network economics. This research offers a comprehensive comparative analysis of DeFi's impact on market power, pricing dynamics, and user adoption, juxtaposed against traditional centralized financial systems. Utilizing advanced analytical methodologies, the study reveals significant findings in the redistribution of market power, the evolution of pricing models, and the shifting landscape of financial service consumers. Central to this study is the investigation of how DeFi platforms, characterized by their decentralization, are reshaping market power dynamics. Traditional financial networks, often dominated by central entities (Nakamoto, 2008), are witnessing a gradual erosion of these centralized powers in favor of a more equitable distribution through DeFi systems (Schär, 2021). This redistribution represents a tangible shift in the power dynamics of financial markets, driven by the unique structure of DeFi. Additionally, the research explores the differences in pricing models between DeFi and traditional finance. It uncovers a novel pricing mechanism within DeFi that starkly contrasts with traditional methods, influencing asset valuation and market volatility (Gorton & Zhang, 2020). This distinct pricing approach in DeFi has the potential to significantly alter the global financial market landscape. Furthermore, the study examines user adoption patterns, highlighting a swift uptake of DeFi, especially in emerging economies (Catalini & Gans, 2020). This trend not only challenges existing financial models but also sheds light on the demographic and psychographic variances between DeFi and traditional finance users (Auer & Claessens, 2020; Biais et al., 2019). This research provides a foundational understanding of DeFi's implications on traditional network economics, paving the way for further studies and informing policy development. It is a vital resource for policymakers and financial institutions navigating the evolving financial service industry.
The transition toward a decentralized energy infrastructure in the United States is critical to addressing growing concerns over grid instability, energy security, and sustainability. Traditional centralized grids face increasing vulnerabilities due to aging infrastructure, climate-induced disruptions, and rising electricity demand. Decentralized energy systems, including distributed renewable energy sources, microgrids, and energy storage solutions, offer resilience and flexibility but require substantial investment. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) have emerged as a viable mechanism to bridge financing gaps by leveraging governmental support, private sector expertise, and innovative financing models. Digital financial instruments, such as blockchain-based energy trading platforms, green bonds, and tokenized energy assets, are reshaping investment strategies by enhancing transparency, liquidity, and accessibility in the energy market. The integration of decentralized finance (DeFi) in energy investment enables peer-to-peer transactions, reducing reliance on traditional financial intermediaries and fostering community-driven energy projects. Moreover, regulatory frameworks and policy incentives play a crucial role in incentivizing private sector participation and ensuring the scalability of decentralized energy initiatives. This paper examines how the synergy between PPPs and digital financial instruments can drive investment in decentralized energy projects, addressing grid instability challenges in the U.S. By analyzing case studies of successful implementations, policy recommendations, and emerging trends in energy finance, this study highlights the transformative potential of innovative investment models in accelerating the clean energy transition. The findings underscore the necessity of a collaborative, technology-driven approach to secure a resilient, decentralized energy future.