GateToken

What is GateToken (GT)?

GateToken is the native token of the GateChain network and the official exchange token of the Gate.io platform.

GateChain is a public blockchain focused on on-chain asset safety and decentralized trading. One of the main problems GateChain tries to solve is asset theft and private key loss.

One of GateChain’s standout features is its uniquely designed Vault Account, but it also offers safe, decentralized trading and cross-chain transfers via GateBridge.

When Was GateToken Launched?

GateToken was issued in 2019 following the Gate.io platform’s decision to solve asset security issues using a decentralized approach.

GateChain allowed Gate.io to bring together several key concepts, including its Revocable Transaction and Clearing Model, which facilitate its Vault Account.

In late 2018, the Revocable Transaction and Clearing Model were successfully verified on the blockchain fundamental structure UTXO. Early the following year, these were applied to the account model, creating the unique Vault Account.

The GateChain project then went live in April 2019, and the first testnet came into being in September of that same year. This GateChain Testnet 1.0 demonstrated a viable solution to the problems the project had intended to solve: loss of private keys and stolen assets.

Several iterations were seen soon after, with Testnet 4.0 eventually launching in May 2020. Prior to that, GateToken was adopted as the official exchange token of Gate.io while also playing a central role in the GateChain network.

Finally, GateChain Mainnet 1.0 launched in July 2020. The GateChain mainnet features revocable stolen assets, post-quantum asset prevention, and various other security features while also retaining excellent performance.

Who are the Founders of GateToken?

GateToken was effectively founded by Gate.io, the platform behind the development of GateChain.

Gate.io is a cryptocurrency exchange that was founded in 2013. Gate.io caters to all sorts of cryptocurrency traders, from elementary traders to professional and institutional traders, with over 10 million users and over 1400 listed currencies.

Gate.io was formerly known as Bter.com, rebranding to Gate.io in 2017. It was founded by Han Lin and offers trading interfaces in English, Chinese, and Japanese.

A growing cryptocurrency powerhouse, Gate.io has a large and already well-developed ecosystem. Foremost within this ecosystem are GateToken and GateChain, but it also has a venture arm called Gate.io ventures and a research wing called Gate Labs. HioDeFi, Wallet.io, Gate NFT, and Block.info are also part of Gate.io’s ecosystem.

How Does GateToken Work?

GateChain is a public blockchain focused on on-chain asset safety and the decentralized exchange of assets. The latter is facilitated by GateChain DEX, which takes advantage of GateChain’s high performance and low participating cost.

According to GateChain’s blog, at the time of the Mainnet 1.0 launch, GateChain was able to process over 2000 transactions per second and confirm blocks in 4 seconds.

Users can also issue their own tokens on GateChain to digitize and manage their assets. These custom tokens are backed by the network’s native GT token.

GateChain supports the cross-chain transfer of multiple currencies via GateBridge. GateBridge is a cross-chain protocol that uses the multi-chain aggregation approach.

In multi-chain aggregation, the liquidity of assets on different chains is centralized using a cross-chain transaction pool. This allows users to add liquidity to the pools and earn cross-chain transaction fees.

Taking interoperability a step further, GateChain 2.0 has also added an EVM module. Referring to the Ethereum Virtual Machine, this upgrade makes GateChain Ethereum compatible, allowing decentralized apps (dApps) to be ported over from Ethereum very easily.

Transactions on GateChain use a bespoke identifier mechanism that allows the recipient to identify the sender’s account type and set confirmation requirements accordingly. This is crucial when it comes to GateChain’s unique safety mechanism, the Vault Account.

What Makes GateToken Unique?

GateChain uses two types of accounts—the Normal or Standard Account and Vault Accounts. As its name implies, the Normal Account is similar to an ordinary cryptocurrency address. Like a Bitcoin address, it can store assets and initiate transactions. These transactions hit the blockchain straight away and, once confirmed, can’t be reversed.

Vault Accounts, however, have three special attributes baked in:

• Retrievable Account. This is a preset account bound to a Vault Account. When a transaction in the Vault Account is revoked, the assets from that transaction go to the “Retri” Account.
• Revocable Delay Period. This sets a time within which a transaction from the Vault Account is revocable. During this time, or amount of blocks, the “revoke” operation can be initiated, resulting in assets being sent to the Retri Account.
• Clearing Height. This is a future block height at which the asset in the Account can be cleared.

Thanks to the interplay of these three additional parameters, Vault Accounts offer the ability to revoke transactions in the case of theft or private key loss. As the delay period and clearing height imply, assets will be locked up in stasis for a certain amount of time when transacted.

GateChain also uses both single-sign and multi-sign wallets. Single-sign wallets tend to be personal wallets where only one holder can authorize transactions. However, multi-sign wallets are regarded as excellent organization or enterprise solutions.

Multi-sign wallets use an “m-of-n” signature mechanism where a certain number out of a given total number of members have to sign off on a transaction for it to count.

How is the GateToken Network Secured?

The GateToken network, also called the GateChain blockchain, is secured by a form of proof-of-stake (PoS). Described as PoS mining, GT holders on GateChain can delegate their tokens to nodes to earn rewards.

These nodes, referred to as consensus nodes, are responsible for running the blockchain. All of GateChain’s functions are loaded onto these nodes, and the network can’t work without them.

GT holders who do not wish to actually run a consensus node can still take part in network consensus. This is done via proxy mining, or delegation, where they choose a consensus node to delegate their GT stake to.

What is the Use of GT?

GateToken is used on GateChain as a utility token and on the Gate.io platform as an exchange token.

Like many exchange tokens, GT offers platform users a variety of benefits. For instance, GT is an important metric in VIP tier escalation on Gate.io, with holders of more GT tokens getting access to higher levels and their associated benefits.

Using GT on the platform can get discounts on trading fees, also depending on VIP level, and GT holders are also able to take part in exclusive events.

On the GateChain network, GT is used as collateral for asset issuance and gas-to-power transactions on the network. GT is also locked up as part of the PoS mining process and is required as fuel to deploy and call smart contracts.

Who Controls GateToken?

GateToken is controlled by its creators, Gate.io and the GateChain Foundation, but there are elements of decentralized governance at play. One major example of this is the Gate.io Listing Vote Scheme.

This program allows KYC-complete GT holders on Gate.io to vote on the listing of new tokens on the exchange. If the project gets a certain number of votes from GT holders, its token gets listed on the exchange. Interestingly, some listing polls even reward participating voters with airdrops of the newly listed token.

GateChain’s roadmap also mentions the planned GateChain DAO enabling proposals and governance on GateChain. The GateChain DAO is listed as being due in 2022.

How Much GT Is In Circulation?

GateToken saw an initial issuance of 1 billion GT, but 700 million GT were burned in the later stages of the process. As such, there was a supply of 300 million GT in circulation at the time it became Gate.io’s official token.

Like many exchanges, Gate.io decided to implement a “buyback & burn program.” Gate.io has a circulation dashboard where you can see how much GT is in circulation at any given time.

The circulation dashboard shows that well over half of the initial GT supply has already been burned.

How Do You Buy GT?

You can buy GT from a variety of sources, with several major exchanges offering trading in GT if you don’t want to or can’t use Gate.io.

GT is also available on GateChain via the DeFi protocols on the blockchain. Hipo DeFi is the biggest DeFi dApp on GateChain and is an excellent source of GT.

Is It Possible to Buy GateToken Instantly?

It is possible to buy GT instantly on Gate.io. In fact, buying GT on a GateChain DEX or DeFi dApp will also feel instant since GateChain confirms blocks in just four seconds. Compared to the likes of Bitcoin, which can take up to an hour for confirmation, GateChain transacts almost instantly.

How Do You Store GT?

You can store GT on a GateChain wallet or on your exchange account. Normally, keeping crypto assets on an exchange account has its drawbacks, but GT does play the role of an exchange token for Gate.io. You can avail yourself of several benefits by storing your GT on-exchange.

If you’d prefer a non-custodial storage solution, there are plenty of options. GateChain’s desktop wallet will do the job and also allow you to delegate your GT tokens toward PoS proxy mining with one click.

You can even use popular wallets like Metamask since GateChain has introduced an EVM compatibility module. GateChain’s documentation has a tutorial on how to set up Metamask for GateChain.

GateToken Energy Consumption

GateChain is a proof-of-stake network that operates on the back of consensus nodes. There are around 130 of these nodes as of October 2022. This isn’t very many machines in the grand scheme of things, certainly not when compared to proof-of-work blockchains.

Is GT a Good Investment?

GateChain positions itself as a blockchain that focuses on safety, and it provides this benefit in spades with a selection of novel solutions.

It’s possible that a lot of GateChain and GateToken’s benefits are targeted at institutional investors or enterprises. This can be seen in how GateChain’s Vault Accounts are often said to have bank vault-level safety.

If GateChain can distinguish itself from other more safety-focused solutions, it could certainly become the leader in its niche. This, along with the growing number of Gate.io users, has every chance of accelerating demand for GT.