Обсуждается краткая история, суть, отношение к друг другу и перспективы развития таких модных технологически трендов как блокчейн, распределенный реестр, криптовалюты, децентрализация вычислений и распределённые вычисления по схеме “равный-к-равному”, а также искусственный интеллект. A brief history, essence, attitude to each other, and prospects for the development of fashionable technological trends such as blockchain, distributed ledger, cryptocurrencies, decentralization of computing, and distributed peer-to-peer computing, as well as artificial intelligence, are discussed.
The aim of this study is to establish the legal status quo of cryptocurrencies in the Russian Federation. The hypothesis presented by this study requires a profound reference to existing and proposed legislation as well as to the statements of a number of international, supranational and national regulatory bodies.
 This study uses qualitative research methods, and primarily consists of descriptive research. Doctrinal and comparative law research also lie at the very heart of this paper as they enable the author to identify, analyze and synthesize a number of foreign (incl. EU), and Russian laws. As a result, the emergence of new institutions and the modernization of existing ones, based on new technological breakthroughs, undoubtedly affect the already existing institutions that are under the influence of changes. Money, which is at the heart of finance, already loses its material forms of expression and regulating properties, alternative tools emerge in the economy that are ready to act as alternatives to this traditional institution. The alternative to money and monetary mechanisms will affect the basic instrument for regulating economic relations and the financial system of the state as a whole - a monopoly on the issue of currency. The nature of cryptocurrency, its features do not make it possible to attribute it entirely either to the means of payment, or to securities, or property. In the existing international community, cryptocurrency lacks a single focal point. Only a progressive view and modern legal regulation of cryptocurrency will create conditions for the development of legal and, most importantly, safe relations in the field of cryptocurrency.
The present chapter will look at the possible application of smart contracts in the intellectual property arena in general, but it will specifically discuss mostly copyright solutions, although a few uses apply to different areas of protection. This presents a few challenges, at the time of writing many of the proposals that will be discussed have not yet been implemented, or are in a prototype level, and as such we may have to assume their viability based on nothing other than a few examples that have not been fully tested. Similarly, legal discussions about the blockchain and smart contracts tend to be surrounded by considerable hype, often fuelled by commercial interests, and it is often difficult to separate facts from sales pitches. This is why this work will try to take a more sceptical approach to the phenomenon.
Problem setting. Comprehensive digitalization of all spheres of life, as one of the most important factors of economic growth in any country, is the mainstream of the modern global world. Digital transformations in the economy are changing approaches to both the organization and conduct of economic activity and the format of its state regulation. The development of the digital economy is inextricably linked with the “digitalization” of a number of traditional objects and / or forms of interaction between participants in economic relations, as well as the emergence and active circulation of new objects whose existence is possible only in digital format (“ digital objects “). Virtual assets / cryptocurrency are one of such objects to which there has been a bivalent attitude since its appearance, and to the legal nature of which a unified approach has not been formed to date. Analysis of recent researches and publications. Among the researchers who in their works addressed the issue of the legal nature of virtual assets / cryptocurrency and transactions with it, it should be noted M.V. Grebenyuk, B.V. Derevyanko, I.M. Doronin, A.T. Kovalchuk, L.O. Nikitin, S.S. Pylypyshyn, V.A. Ustymenko and others. At the same time, a full-scale study of this issue, in particular from the standpoint of economic law, requires further legal, including economic and legal research. Target of research is to study the heterogeneous nature of virtual assets / cryptocurrencies in the context of digital transformations in the economy and modernization of domestic legislation. Article’s main body. In the context of global digitalization, the scale and pace of digital transformations associated with the emergence of new digital objects, their active involvement in civil, economic turnover and subsequent market turnover are growing. Virtual assets/cryptocurrency are one of the objects in relation to which there has been a bivalent attitude since its appearance, and in relation to the legal nature of which a unified approach has not been formed to date. This article discusses the first official explanations in Ukraine on the nature of virtual assets / cryptocurrencies, as well as the position of the Office of Effective Regulation (BRDO) and theoretical and legal approaches to this object. Qualification features are analyzed, which contains the legislative definition of “virtual asset”, which together represent its functional heterogeneity. Some issues related to the contractual basis for the circulation of virtual assets / cryptocurrencies are highlighted, and suggestions for further development of the current legislation on these facilities are provided. Conclusions and prospects for the development. Legislative legalization of the concept of “virtual assets” is an important step towards the legalization of the virtual assets market and the first stage of the institution of virtual assets, further development of which requires intensification of work on the development of relevant legislation on virtual assets. connection with the generation (issue) and circulation of virtual assets. At the same time, achieving a synergistic effect in the legal regulation of relations, the object of which are virtual assets/cryptocurrency, necessitates appropriate amendments to the Commercial and Civil Codes of Ukraine, the Law of Ukraine “On e-commerce”, tax, investment legislation and more.
Dmitrii Aleksandrovich Kolesnichenko, Olga Viktorovna Kolesnichenko
The subject of this research is legislation, official interpretation, case law, and doctrinal sources on taxation of cryptocurrency mining in the Russian Federation with regards to personal income tax. The author verifies the hypothesis on the absence of economic basis for collection of personal income tax for cryptocurrency mining, thus there is a need for fundamentally new model of legal regulation for taxation of this activity. Special attention is given to assessment of tax consequences of mining based on the content of official interpretation of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, as well as with consideration of the developed in the doctrine basic approaches towards determination of the legal nature of cryptocurrency as property and property rights (other financial instruments. The author’s significant contribution consists in substantiation of the conclusion that the current system of legal regulation has no economic basis for collection of personal income tax for cryptocurrency mining; at the same time, future taxation of mining can be based on the patent tax system of taxation. It is reasoned that in order to ensure the implementation of the indicated special tax regime, it is necessary to attribute mining to entrepreneurial activity, as well as modify legal definition of the latter, which is formulated in Article 2 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The author determines the legal prerequisites for taking cryptocurrency mining activity out of shadow and its lawful exercise in the Russian Federation.
Abstract This paper presents a concept of real estate tokenization, which includes legal, technological, and organizational aspects. The research introduces a theory of a Title Token – a digital record of ownership on the blockchain. It is discussed the principle of technological neutrality, where the traditional land registry is not necessarily abandoned in favor of blockchains, but instead, people gain the right to choose. Nowadays, public administrations use central-server databases, giving no alternatives for citizens. Recognition of the right of citizens to choose which technology to apply for managing their property rights creates a basis for free competition and the development of new technologies for better public services. Decentralized distributed ledgers are the key to decentralization. They enable more secure automation of legal procedures. On the contrary, centralization is a source of many issues in governance: abuse of power, corruption, inefficient governance, and high costs, slowness and complexity of bureaucratic procedures. With automation and reduction of intermediaries, the role of the government does not decrease but significantly changes, i.e. land cadaster bodies should not be monopolistic providers on the market. The paper introduces a theoretical basis for developing a new type of property registries.
스마트계약과 관련하여 지금까지 미흡하게 다루어져 왔던 주제의 하나는 소비자 보호이다. 스마트계약을 이용한 거래에서 소비자가 어떻게 보호될 수 있는지 및 스마트 계약을 소비자에게 유리하게 사용할 수 있는지의 문제가 제기된다. 이에 본 연구는 정보제공의무와 소비자 철회권을 중심으로 살펴보았다. 현행법에 대한 분석뿐만 아니라 스마트계약에 의한 소비자보호의 추상적 가능성에 관하여도 개관하였다. 국가기관에 의한 권리실현 절차보다 효율적인 계약의 자동실행을 사력구제라고 하여 모두 부적법하다고 할 것은 아니다. 그러나 스마트계약을 통한 계약의 자동실행이 항상 합법적인 것도 아니다. 스마트계약의 자동실행은 현행법, 특히 강행법규가 허용하는 테두리 내에 있어야 한다. 강행법규는 항상 계약의 효력과 적법성을 위한 기준이 된다. 따라서 스마트계약을 이용한 거래가 소비자 보호의 사각지대가 되거나 스마트계약이 소비자계약법의 강행규정을 우회하는 수단으로 이용되어서는 안 된다. 그 때문에 스마트계약을 이용한 특수한 유형의 B2C 거래에서도 정보제공의무가 이행되어야 하며 철회권의 행사가 보장되어야 한다. 스마트계약의 자동실행은 강행규정이 허용하는 범위 내에서만 가능한 것이다. 스마트계약을 이용한 거래에서도 이미 현행법에 따라 일정 정보가 제공되어야 하고 소비자 철회권 행사가 가능할 수 있다. 또한, 스마트계약은 계약의 자동실행을 통해 소비자 보호 관련 법률조항으로 거의 제공할 수 없는 법적 안정성을 소비자에게 제공할 수 있다. 현재 소비자에 대한 최대의 위험은 스마트계약이 프로그래밍 오류를 일으킬 위험을 내재하고 있다는 점이다. 스마트계약의 기술적 안전성이 보장되면, 소비자 관련 스마트계약의 잠재력이 최대한 활용될 수 있을 것이다. 예컨대 사업자는 스마트계약에 일정 보안 검사를 하고 이 검사를 일종의 인증마크처럼 활용할 수 있을 것이다. 검사를 장려하는 유인책으로서, 검사를 거치지 아니한 스마트계약의 사용자는 소비자에 대하여 보안위험 및 행하여지지 아니한 검사를 소비자에게 명확하게 지적할 의무를 부과하는 방안을 고려할 수 있을 것이다.Zu den bisher lediglich rudimentär behandelten Themen im Zusammenhang mit Smart Contracts gehören jene des Verbrauchervertragsrechts. Die spezielle Eigenschaft und Mechanik von Blockchain basierten Smart Contracts kann gerade im Zusammenhang mit dem Verbrauchervertragsrecht ein gewisses Spannungsverhältnis auslösen. Dabei stellt sich sowohl die Frage, wie Verbraucher beim Einsatz eines Smart Contracts geschützt werden, als auch, wie diese zugunsten der Verbraucher eingesetzt werden können. Ein Schwerpunkt liegt dabei neben der Geltung von Verbraucherrechten auf Informationspflichten und Widerrufsrechten. Über die Analyse de lege late hinaus soll zudem ein Überblick über die abstrakten Möglichkeiten des Verbraucherschutzes durch Smart Contracts gegeben werden. Selbstverständlich müssen die Wirkungen eines Smart Contracts mit geltendem Recht in Einklang stehen. Dieses bildet stets den Maßstab für die Wirksamkeit und Rechtmäßigkeit des Vertrags. Sowohl die Bereitstellung gewisser spezifischer Informationen als auch die Ausübung eines etwaigen Widerrufsrechts können beim Einsatz eines Smart Contracts nach geltendem Recht bereits gewährleistet werden. Daneben bietet der Smart Contract seinerseits Verbrauchern durch die Automatisierung der Leistungspflichten eine Rechtsicherheit, die verbraucherschützende Normen kaum bieten können. Die größte Gefahr für Verbraucher dürfte aktuell im Risiko etwaiger Programmierfehler des Smart Contracts liegt. Die Pflicht im Rahmen der einschlägigen Informationspflichten über diese Risiken zu informieren, dürfte dem Verbraucher nur unzureichend helfen, insbesondere wenn man bedenkt, dass bereitgestellte Informationen von Verbrauchern klassischerweise wohl nicht einmal wahrgenommen werden dürften. Vielmehr dürfte das volle Potential von Smart Contracts im Zusammenhang mit Verbrauchern dann ausgeschöpft werden können, wenn die technische Sicherheit von Smart Contracts gewährleistet ist. Denkbar wäre etwa, dass Unternehmer den Smart Contract einer bestimmten Sicherheitsprüfung unterziehen und diese Überprüfung wie eine Art Prüfsiegel angeben können. Als Anreiz zur Überprüfung könnten die Verwender ungeprüfter Smart Contracts gegenüber Verbrauchern verpflichtet werden, auf das Sicherheitsrisiko beziehungsweise die nichterfolgte Prüfung ähnlich deutlich hinzuweisen.
Cryptocurrency and the problems of its legal regulation have recently become the subject of numerous studies. Legal science, including criminal law, does not stand aside. The contradictory nature of the legal nature of cryptocurrencies, the inability to accurately determine their species affiliation, a fairly large number of questions from the law enforcer led to an extensive doctrinal discussion. In author’s opinion, one of the most urgent questions is the definition of cryptocurrency relations as an object of crime and how errors in the perception of these relations and, most importantly, their subject matter, affect the enforcement and subsequent qualification of crimes. The paper discusses in detail the main points of view on the essence of cryptocurrency, the position of scientists on this issue. The author explains why cryptocurrency cannot be attributed to the types of securities, currencies or currency values known to modern law, and offers her own approach to the definition of cryptocurrency and cryptocurrency relations, and indicates how this affects the application of the criminal law.
Paul Babie, David W. Brown, Ryan Catterwell, Mark Giancaspro
On 8 April 2020, Gendall J, sitting in the High Court of New Zealand, decided Ruscoe and Moore v Cryptopia Limited (In Liquidation), providing the most recent and authoritative common law statement in the world on whether a cryptocurrency is property. The case provides significant guidance for any jurisdiction, common or civil, faced with determining whether cyrptocurrencies are property. This note outlines the approach taken to ‘the property question’ by Gendall J, in four parts. Part I introduces the property question. Part II provides a brief overview of blockchain and the nature of cryptocurrencies. Part III briefly recounts Gendall J’s reasons for the judgment concluding that cryptocurrencies are property. Part IV offers some brief reflections on the implications of the decision for property and for the relationship of property to contract.
With the rapid development of new technologies taking place during the 4th Industrial Revolution, new types of disputes of significant specificity have gradually begun to emerge. Among such cases a special category of cases has been formed by disputes arising from smart contracts based on block chain technology. There are two possible ways to resolve such disputes. Under the first approach, they are subject to consideration by traditional arbitration institutions, guided by the usual rules and guidelines (blockchain arbitration). The second approach involves the need to create innovative applications based on blockchain technology and designed to resolve disputes arising in a digital decentralized environment ( blockchain arbitration). Such applications, in turn, are divided into two groups. The first group consists of projects involving the creation of a special arbitration combining the advantages of international commercial arbitration and blockchain technology; the second group includes projects involving the establishment of a decentralized quasi-judicial system for dispute resolution. The paper attempts to analyze the most interesting projects related to each of the listed groups and assess the prospects of their development. Based on the results of the analysis, the author comes to the conclusion that the implementation of such projects will lead to the emergence of many issues (among which the problem of choice of applicable law, determination of place of arbitration, arbitrability, as well as the possibility of recognition and enforcement of awards made by such arbitral tribunal). Under the influence of new technologies, international commercial arbitration is gaining a new direction of its development. In the future, the development of new technologies will require not only rationalization of existing dispute resolution mechanisms, but also a fundamental rethinking.
The article covers the possibilities of comprehensive use of identification technologies and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) for increasing the efficiency of electronic services provided through multi-purpose student cards. The main advantages and disadvantages of the existing intellectual document emission systems in the Belarusian education system are assessed, including: centralized (the “Student Card” project) and decentralized (the electronic student card) ones. The proposal to use the DLT-model for issuing multi-purpose electronic student cards combined with bank payment cards has been grounded. Such model makes it possible to implement new functional capabilities when providing electronic services and has a number of advantages over the existing systems of electronic student documents issuance. The article describes how Public Blockchain and Private Blockchain can be used to issue and control intellectual documents, to accelerate the development of the electronic services provided through Smart Contract, and how the Smart Contract technology can be used to promote fair competition among electronic services providers. The methodology of evaluating the electronic services provider rating basing on the weighting factor of “usefulness” or “being in demand” is proposed. The article provides information on the expected effects of the proposed DLT-model implementation, obtained through the comprehensive use of identification technologies and distributed ledger technology.
Open access
Economic and Technological Systems Analysis
Digital Transformation in Law
Digitalization and Economic Development in Agriculture
While technology is playing an increasingly important role in courtrooms around the world, Chinese courts are adopting and experimenting with deep technologies at a much faster pace and on a greater scale than their counterparts in most other countries. In recent years, Chinese courts have seen major developments in online dispute resolution platforms, specialized Internet courts, and the wide use of AI tools across case management, dispute resolution and adjudication processes in personal injury claims. Other novel technologies such as distributed ledgers, blockchain and smart contracts solutions are currently being developed and rolled out in several local and specialised courts. The Chinese leadership has established a policy framework of “Smart Courts” with the aims of enhancing judicial efficiency, transparency, and effectiveness. This article provides an overview of how Chinese courts have swiftly embraced the adoption of new technologies under this framework over the past few years, with consideration of how Smart Courts may handle personal injury claims.
Marina Afanasievna Lapina, Ekaterina Alexandrovna Pogrebinskaya, В. Н. Назаров, Petr Katys
The article is devoted to studying the current state of legal regulation of cryptocurrency circulation. Cryptocurrency has appeared relatively recently and immediately gained popularity among a certain part of users of modern financial services, as well as a misunderstanding or even complete rejection by others. In different states, the attitude to cryptocurrency also varies. Some countries, while allowing for the circulation of cryptocurrency, are developing its legal regulation, others have failed to find a better solution than to impose restrictions or even a complete ban.
Open access
Security, Politics, and Digital Transformation
Digital Transformation in Law
Digitalization and Economic Development in Agriculture
Traditional contracts are being replaced in an increasing number of instances by smart contracts that is, “decentralized agreements built in computer code and stored on a blockchain”, which are able to automatically execute the terms within the contract and control the relations between parties so that no further “explicit but redundant” negotiations are needed. This paper assesses current and evolving concerns regarding the adoption of blockchain technology in the areas of financial services, and corporate and public governance. The author evaluates the risks and benefits of the utilization of smart contracts and assesses their suitability (in terms of transparency, accountability, responsibility and fairness) for use in the public services’ “space”. It concludes that while the benefits outweigh the disadvantages, great care should be exercised in terms of design and use because this is still a developing area in terms of both the technology itself and the regulatory environment.
The advent of the Blockchain together with the appearance of the Ethereum platform gave rise to the realization of Szabo's original idea, allowing the implementation of intelligent contracts. Blockchain by itself is a database with certain special characteristics but the potential that this technology acquires with the implementation of intelligent contracts leads us to the conceptualization of intelligent property, internet of things, artificial intelligence, intelligent cities, tokenization of physical assets and properties. This last concept also triggers the possibility of issuing tokens linked to undertakings with sustainable development objectives or "green tokens". The tokenization of digital goods has developed naturally, but the pitfalls -more mental than legal and technological- are present in the tokenization of physical assets, and we will address them in this paper. Del Castillo Ionov says: "tokenization involves taking an asset and, using blockchain technology, issuing tokens representative of that asset, facilitating its negotiation, the enjoyment of the rights of that asset and its governance". We believe that the tokenization of physical assets will allow a new field of action, marketing, transmission, circulation of rights and wealth, as well as a new range of opportunities not only for all legal operators but also for the great mass of capital investors interested in sustainable development, as well as for the home retail investor.
The cutting-edge technologies are the main drivers of modern innovations. At the same time, they also bring new risks to security and privacy. In addition to the legal regulation of security measures in the digital world, it is now necessary to incorporate cyber security knowledge into curricula. Advanced technologies are introducing new security risks. The dynamic change in cyber security affects business risk management and is driven by the continuous improvement of sophisticated technology by malicious actors.The main focus of the study is to justify the need to integrate cyber security into curricula that are related to cutting-edge technologies. The emphasis is on the need for proactive steps in education to prepare learners to adequately address the cybersecurity issues that come with IoT (Internet of Things), AI (Artificial Intelligence), DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology), VR (Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality) and containers.The article provides an overview of the regulatory framework and security incidents that inevitably lead to conclusions about the need to introduce the problem area of cybersecurity in the curriculum for IoT, AI, DLT, VR and containers. Updating the curriculum with cyber security components will lead to the full realization of specialists in the respective field. The cyber security competences have been analyzed for the current state of the problem, taking into account both the regulatory requirements of Europe and some national ones.The analyzes, conclusions and recommendations of this article are aimed at reducing the deficits in cybersecurity training in problem areas that have progressed without compliance with standards or minimum requirements for protection against measured impacts. This is a step towards applying the EU's common competences for cybersecurity skills in the SME sector on the path to simultaneously promoting technical and organizational expertise and corporate culture to comply with emerging regulations, directives and laws related to cybersecurity and privacy.This article is aligned with the efforts of the EU Cybersecurity Competencies Team responding for the skills shortage on the labor market.In addition to the "shift left" in the software production process (SDLC), it also justifies the paradigm for the EARLY INCORPORATING shift in the curriculum.
ابزارهای مبادلاتی نوین در عصر حاضر نقشی غیرقابل انکار در توسعه تجارت الکترونیکی بر عهده دارند. یکی از این ابزارها قراردادهای هوشمند هستند که در مقایسه با دیگر انواع قراردادهای الکترونیکی دارای خصوصیاتی از جمله سرعت و امنیت بالا هزینه کم در تشکیل قرارداد میباشند. پژوهش حاضر به روش اسنادی به دنبال پاسخگویی به این سؤال است که سیاستگذاری قواعد عمومی تشکیل قراردادها در مرحله انعقاد قراردادهای هوشمند با چه چالشهایی مواجه است؟ بهطور کلی مهمترین چالشهای موجود مطابقت قواعد حاکم بر این قراردادها با هنجارهای موجود در جامعه، تعارض قوانین داخلی کشورها با یکدیگر و مقررات بینالمللی، اعتبارسنجی این قراردادها و ابزارهای انعقاد آنها از جمله ارزهای مجازی، سازوکار عملکرد هوش مصنوعی و ماهیت متمرکز پایگاههای اطلاعاتی و هوش مصنوعی میباشد. رفع چالشهای مذکور نیازمند برخی سیاستگذاریهای تقنینی و اجرایی از جمله تصویب قوانین کارآمد در جهت اعتبارسنجی قراردادهای هوشمند و ارزهای مجازی، اصلاح قوانین متعارض موجود، پیشبینی تشریفات تخصیص مجوز تملک ارزهای مجازی و بهرهمندی از امضائات دیجیتالی، آگاهی بخشی به مردم و تعیین نهادهای ناظر خواهد بود.
The article gives a brief analysis of the place of a cryptocurrency in the system of objects of civil law rights. According to the results of the study, the authors conclude that it is incorrect to equate legal regimes of the cryptocurrency with the legal regime of virtual objects. The authors consider it promising to regulate legal features of the distributed ledger and register objects of civil law rights in the distributed ledger. A cryptocurrency is a means of payment that has no independent value. Thus, the mechanism of performance of obligations needs special elaboration. It is also noted that in the legal regulation of any social relations an essential role is assigned to the mechanisms and guarantees of restoration of violated rights and legitimate interests. To this end, the cryptocurrency regulation is inextricably linked with the institution of civil liability. The cryptocurrency combines the features of many civil law rights, but does not fully correspond to any of them. The assignment of the cryptocurrency to other property is possible within the framework of the current legislation without creating new objects of civil law rights, which can lead to conflicts and disputes concerning their legal regime.
Anatolii Georgievich Korchagin, Andrei Aleksandrovich Yakovenko
  This article explores the phenomenon of cryptocurrency and technology it is based upon. The authors describe the mechanism of its functionality along with the occurred problems of legal nature, which being interrelated make the phenomenon in question appealing within the criminal environment. Global digitalization sets new requirements, namely the combinations of legal and technical regulators meant to achieving adequate legal regulation in the digital era. The subject of this research is the Russian and foreign legal doctrine that reveals the essence of the indicated technology and mechanisms for protecting social relations in the context of utilization of this technology. The research methodology consists of the following methods: statistical, dogmatic, comparative-legal, synergetic, logical, functional, and systemic. The scientific novelty is substantiated by the need for convergence of the legal and information systems and demonstration of such convergence during the period of rapid digitalization in all social spheres. The authors draw a conclusion that the problem carries a comprehensive character, and the longer it takes to resolve the issues of legal regulation, the higher are the risks of using cryptocurrency.  
With the recent popularity of Blockchain and other Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLT), blockchain enabled smart contract applications has attracted increased research focus. However, the immutability of the blocks, where the smart contracts are stored, causes conflicts with the traditional Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) models usually followed by software engineers. This clearly shows the unsuitability of the application of SDLC in designing blockchain enabled smart contract based applications. This research article addresses this current problem by first exploring the six traditional SDLC models, clearly identifying the conflicts in a table with the application of smart contracts and advocates that there is an urgent need to develop new standard model(s) to address the arising issues. The concept of both block immutability and contract is introduced. This is further set in a historical context from legacy smart contracts and blockchain enabled smart contracts extending to the difference between "shallow smart contracts" and "deep smart contracts". To conclude, the traditional SDLC models are unsuitable for blockchain enabled smart contract-based applications.