Through a review of the main improvements of the blockchain and an analysis of the Steem’s model and token creation, how viable is the Steem model compared to the Bitcoin and what impact has the Steem’s inflation on its price ?

Details

Supervisors

Pensieroso, Luca

Faculty

Faculté des sciences économiques, sociales, politiques et de communication

Degree label

Master [120] en sciences économiques, orientation générale

Abstract

This paper aims at understanding the mechanism of a cryptocurrency working with a blockchain 3.0, Steem. It is intended to be a social network, which pays its users with newly created exchangeable tokens. Therefore, it is similar to inflation or more specifically, seigniorage. It is paying its users by increasing the total amount of tokens. We will try to evaluate the impact of this inflation on the price of the token. A reasonable assumption would be that the price is supposed to fall. Also, we will analyze the economic model of Steem compared to Bitcoin, especially in the long run. In order to review this, this paper will start with an explanation of what a blockchain is and how it is working, mainly by taking the Bitcoin as an example. Then, we will see the evolution of the blockchain to understand how Steem is different from Bitcoin and what purpose it fulfills. The next section will be dedicated to real-life applications of the blockchain to put in perspective the possibilities offered by it. It will also be a way to introduce Steem as one of the applications. Next, we will examine the model of Steem, how it is constructed and different from Bitcoin allowing no transaction fees. Moreover, the concept and the project of Steem will be explained. Lastly, we will review the price evolution of Steem and see its relationship with Bitcoin’s price but also if its inflation has the expected impact. During the writing of this paper, Facebook announced its own cryptocurrency, the Libra, so the very last section will be covering its main features.