Cryptocurrency is revolutionary technology that empowers individuals by giving them monetary freedom. It enables anyone with access to the internet and a computer or mobile phone to have full control of their money. It banks the unbanked and enables people across the globe to transact with one another, peer-to-peer, for very low fees, and without any middlemen or centralized third parties.
Cryptocurrency truly is a monetary revolution. However, it’s been more than 10 years since Bitcoin – the first successful cryptocurrency was created and its adoption is less than 1% of the world population.
This lack of adoption may be warranted seeing as our current monetary system dates back centuries. But still, one would expect cryptocurrencies to have achieved more adoption than they have.
With this lack of adoption problem in mind, a cryptocurrency project called Energi (NRG) has been thoughtfully designed and created to tackle this problem head-on. Energi aims to reach the masses and become the world’s leading cryptocurrency platform.
Energi (NRG) mission statement is:
“Being the world’s leading cryptocurrency with the unification of Smart Contracts, Governance & Self-funding Treasury to ensure longevity and enable rapid growth.”
In the following article, I provide a comprehensive and subjective look at Energi (NRG) so that you can fundamentally understand what Energi is and see the value proposition of NRG. I delve into its unique characteristics, its history, purpose, partnerships, as well as its issues and controversies surrounding it.
By the time you’re done the reading, you’ll fundamentally understand Energi and what sets it apart from other cryptocurrency projects. So buckle up and enjoy this comprehensive guide to understanding this thoughtfully designed cryptocurrency – Energi (NRG).
History of Energi (NRG)
The idea for Energi was conceived by Tommy World Power on the 4th of July 2017 (Independence Day in the USA).
Tommy first discovered crypto in 2013 and quickly dove in headfirst, spending thousands of hours researching the cryptocurrency space and its technologies at a high level. He became fascinated with tokenomics, governance, network effects, smart contract capabilities, and all other factors influencing and shaping crypto.
Through his research and learning, Tommy came to realize that the space was missing a truly powerful, self-sufficient, and economically-optimized cryptocurrency.
He recognized that while some cryptos were implementing innovative governance models, good tokenomics, smart contract capabilities among other things, they were still missing key pieces that could produce enormous value.
These key pieces or components, which are now proposed features of Energi include:
- Smart Contract Capabilities
- Decentralized Governance
- A Decentralized Treasury
- User Incentivization through Masternodes and Staking
- Strong Moral Leadership
Before Energi was even born, Tommy made a video describing the importance of these components, and soon after began working on Energi.
Moving on, Energi’s beginnings differ from most crypto projects as no money was raised by outside or public investors, and there was no ICO. Energi was funded solely by Tommy and launched in the midst of crypto winter on April 14th, 2018.
Energi Coin Specs, Issuance and Distribution
Energi Ticker Symbol: NRG
Block Time: 1 minute
Hashing Algorithm: Dagger-Hashimoto (similar to Ethereum)
Masternode Requirements: 10,000 Energi
Treasury Cycle: Every 14 days
Energi initially followed a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus algorithm where approximately 1 million Energi (NRG) were released per month. The protocol has since transitioned to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) with the same amount of coins released and there is no limit on the number of coins.
Therefore, Energi is inflationary and its inflation is key to the survival and growth of the network – inflation is the engine that fuels Energi’s funding.
“Our approach is that every dollar we invest into our ecosystem should yield much more than a dollar of new value-added when spent appropriately in development, marketing, and impactful campaigns which expand our reach. It’s a positive feedback loop.” – Tommy
As for Energi (NRG) distribution, the monthly token allocations are as follows:
- 10% will go to the Energi Backbone
- 10% to Stakers
- 40% to Masternodes (need 10,000 NRG to be a Masternode)
- 40% to the Treasury
If you’re wondering what the Energi backbone is, it simply consists of TommyWorldPower and anyone he chooses to share with privately. Therefore, 10% of the 1 million issued tokens go to him each month and it gives him the power to direct the network.
Tommy believes that strong moral leadership is highly important yet often overlooked. He is heavily incentivized to use these funds wisely by growing and expanding the network as this 10% allocation is all that Tommy gets.
Unlike many other crypto projects with massive pre mines and substantial percentages of tokens allocated to its founders, Tommy received nothing as he launched Energi fairly with no pre-mine or ICO.
Energi launched with an airdrop campaign that released ~4 million Energi to the community. At the time of writing, the total and circulating supply of Energi is 22,633,008 NRG.
Purpose of Energi (NRG)
The purpose of Energi is to introduce and bring cryptocurrency to the masses. Cryptocurrency adoption is less than 1% of the world’s population and Energi was created and thoughtfully designed to increase its adoption.
Energi intends to become the world’s leading cryptocurrency and hopes to accomplish this goal through its thoughtful design that ensures longevity and enables rapid growth.
Energi Treasury
The first step to achieving this goal is to build a strong foundation, which is why 40% of the 1 million Energi released per month goes towards the treasury system. Energi’s treasury system is the largest in crypto, ie. four times greater than Dash, Decred, and PIVX.
The idea behind a large treasury system is to allow greater funding for marketing efforts, to pay contributors, to spread awareness, to work on development, and allow for more collaboration. With more money spent on these things, Energi should experience more growth, etc, a positive feedback loop.
Energi Governance and Staking
To ensure funds are being spent responsibly, Energi’s treasury system is decentralized as Masternodes vote where to direct funds. Also, Masternodes help to secure the network and help increase the price of NRG.
Users are incentivized to become a Masternode because they receive 40% of Energi’s inflation and must hold 10,000 NRG to become a Masternode. Since they must hold a lot of NRG and receive NRG for being a Masternode, they are incentivized not to sell and the price increases as a result.
Energy also incentivizes users through staking with high rewards, which in return secures the network and encourages growth.
Besides masternodes and staking encouraging growth, Energi has strong moral leadership that ensures treasury funds are utilized most efficiently – generating great value in return for the funds spent.
“Our approach is that every dollar we invest into our ecosystem, should yield much more than a dollar of new value-added.”
Energi’s High Inflation Rate
Another important aspect of increasing Energi’s growth and adoption is its high inflation rate. While most people would think a high inflation rate is bad, Energi views it as a good thing because it encourages spending and reinvestment.
Energi seeks to use its treasury budget month-to-month with the goal of achieving a maximum return in value-added to the system. A higher inflation rate enables them to invest appropriately with developers, the best marketing efforts, and other expenditures to expand its reach.
Energi Smart Contract Capabilities
In addition to Energi’s innovative treasury model, governance, masternodes, and staking, the project has been built with smart contract capabilities adapted from Ethereum. With the release of Energi 3.0, the platform is now fully compatible with Ethereum dapps and they can migrate to the Energi ecosystem.
Energi’s compatibility with Ethereum will help to grow Energi’s ecosystem and increase user experience through existing Ethereum infrastructure.
Energi Issues and Controversies
Energi, for the most part, has been free from any major issues or controversies. However, there are some aspects about the project that some people, including myself, find worrying.
High Inflation and No Cap on Supply
The first issue that could potentially be worrisome is Energi’s high inflation rate. 1 million NRG coins are released every month and there is no cap on total supply. In my opinion, this is not great for the long term price of NRG and I can’t see the price holding up.
However, in Energi’s defense, masternodes are incentivized to hodl rather than sell, which reduces supply and can increase its price. As well, I’m sure Energi’s decentralized governance can come up with solutions if their uncapped total supply and high inflation rate become a problem for the NRG price. Also, putting a cap on the total supply of NRG would mean an inevitable end of Treasury emission and Masternode rewards.
Centralization?
One other issue that could potentially arise with Energi is a downfall in leadership. Energi has an aspect of centralization in which the project’s founder, TommyWorldPower, receives 10% of the Energi supply.
Tommy has strong moral leadership and is heavily incentivized to do good for the project, but if he decided to abandon the project and continuously dump his coins, it wouldn’t be good. As well, Tommy plays a huge role in influencing the project in the direction he sees fit. However, this is to be expected, especially in the early stages of a project.
Energi Partnerships and Adoption
One of Energi’s goals is to employ 1 million people, which falls in line with the project’s goals of mass adoption and long term planning. As of now, Energi has over 50 active contributors building Energi.
The makeup of Energi’s team is:
- 5 people involved with Leadership
- 9 Developers, Designers, and Software Engineers
- 6 people involved with Operations
- 6 people involved with Marketing
- 19 people involved with Community Management
- 1 individual with Human Resources
- 1 individual win Legal
- 2 people with Defence
- 4 people with Energi Impact
- 2 Advisors
As for Energi partnerships, the project lists these companies on their website:
- KuCoin
- DigiFinex
- CryptoBridge
- Coinomi
- MNO
- CoinMarketCap
- Blockfolio Signal
- NodeHost
- Delta
- Beam.Works
- Smart ICO Investor
- Arcane Bear
- TokenMap
- Data Dash
- DigitalBits
- CryptoMask
- Crypto Coin News
- Blue Collar Crypto
- Crypto Coin Show
- Reuters Insider
- Altcoin Daily
As for Energi’s adoption, the project’s unique design appears to be working as it’s growth has exploded since launch:
Conclusion
Energi is an innovative cryptocurrency that sets itself apart from the rest with its finely tuned self-funding Treasury and decentralized Governance model coupled with smart contract functionality.
The project is heavily focused on growth and longevity and has the potential to become one of the most dominant cryptocurrency platforms in existence. In addition, to Energi’s thoughtful design, the project is led by strong moral leadership that aims to make Energi a globally-impacting organization.
All in all, Energi is still a young cryptocurrency with some very innovative yet experimental features. It will be interesting to see how Energi performs over the coming years, especially since its platform has already seen substantial growth and has yet to experience a bull market.
What do you think about Energi (NRG)? Do you think its unique design will bring the project widespread adoption and success? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.
